The Ivy: 2009, May Issue - St. Michaels University School

THE IVY
S t . M i c h a e l s U n i v e r s i t y S c h o o l V i c t or i a , B . C . C a n a d a
May 7th 2009, Volume 8, Issue 4
L i t e ra r y E d i t i o n
COME TOGETHER TO THE SMUS SPRING FAIR
By Jinsun Choi and Rachel Nam
“One thing I can tell you is
You got to be free
Come together, right now
Over to the Spring Fair”
In truth, we have more than
one thing to tell you. In less
than two weeks, the SMUS
community will be celebrating
the Spring Fair, one of the biggest events the school holds.
-From “Come Together” by
the Beatles
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
School Life
1
Sports
5
Fashion
6
Future
8
Arts
9
Environment
11
Entertainment
13
Spring Fair (school year 2003-2004)
This year, we have something
for every kind of person out
there. For people who spend
their Saturdays hunting for
novelty items at garage sales,
it’s all conveniently located in
one spot. One could more eloquently put it the super Mecca
of garage sales. Certain items
are reasonably priced for thrift
shoppers, leaving much money
left for those essentials in life,
Special Features
such as, a mani-pedi for your
pet dog, knowing that dogs do
not have hands.
And for those that love to
travel but unfortunately have
pteromerhanophobia (fear of
flying) and cannot bring back
international goods, our amazing students have done that for
you. It’s like being a celebrity
with personal shoppers that
bring back exotic items but
they are bringing them for hundreds of people who are competing for those same items.
Oh, the thrill!
But since one cannot experience a country and its culture
just by buying its products, one
must satisfy the taste buds. And
what a coincidence! The spring
fair has it all! Not only do we
bring you top-notch souvenirs,
we go one step further for your
Rowing Accomplishments
The SMUS Crew has done
it… again!
Page 5
Petra Kenney Contest Winner
Vickie Yang’s poem
“Mid-Autumn Eve”
Page 10
Slow Food
What does “slow food” mean
and what is its significance? Find
out
Page 11
(Continued on page 5)
The Ivy’s VERNAL VERSES
Contest Winners
Haiku
Poetry
Winners: Brenda Tong, Linda Yu
Winner: Eric Protzer
Runners-up: Charles Leitz, Charmaine Niewerth,
David Sedley
Runner-up: Monica Lee
Honourable Mentions: Eric Beban, Candice Cooper,
Geordie Dafoe, Stacie Hoi, Purni Jung, Emily Ready,
Charles Southwell, Sophie Yeates
Judged by Mrs. McCachen, Mr. Taylor and Mr. Young
On Pages 9 & 10
The Ivy—Page 2
School Life
May 7th, 2009
F R E E T H E C H I L D R E N T R I P T O K E N YA
By Lyn Li Che
“I want to go to Kenya on the
Free the Children Trip. They’re
going to build a school.”
My dad scoffed when I told
him that last November.
“You’re probably just going
there to have fun,” he teased as
he signed the consent forms,
“It’s not like you’re going to do
actual work.”
‘He’s so going to have to eat
his words,’ I silently cursed 4
months later, as I bent over a
shallow trench, back aching,
and picked through a layer of
rock. The African sun beat
down mercilessly on my neck.
The Kenya experience was
unlike anything I could ever
have imagined. When I was
told that we were going to stay
in tents, I didn’t think that we
were actually going to stay in
huge, boarding-room-sized
tents complete with beds and
camp wardrobes. I had been
told that there were going to be
showers, but I was surprised
anyway to find that the staff
had actually set up showers and
even dedicated their time to
heating up bath water for us.
And when I was told that we
were going to “build a school”
in Kenya, it didn’t mean that
we were going to insert a few
bricks into a wall… we actually
had to engage in manual labour.
So over Spring Break, 18 kids
(12 from SMUS, 6 from Semiahmoo Secondary in Vancouver) and 4 adults found themselves in the middle of nowhere
(the nearest hospital was about
2 hours away) with two Canadian facilitators and a Maasai
warrior named Sammy. Armed
with an arsenal of wheelbarrows, picks and shovels, we
helped to build a classroom
from scratch at Pimbiniet Primary School – a “small” school
in the Kenyan countryside that
catered to 600 pupils. The
school already had a few classrooms built by Free the Children, but was in need of many
more.
The school building process
was simple enough in theory:
we had to dig the foundation--a
trench around 2-3 feet deep (in
some places, we literally had to
pick through solid rock) and fill
it with cement. Once the cement had set, layers of brick
and mortar had to be laid, followed by the roof beams. The
real construction workers had
to lay the roof on top as it was
deemed to be too dangerous
for us students to do, being the
amateurs that we were. On
some days, we also got to help
construct a nearby medical
facility, which utilized almost
the same techniques, but was
much bigger.
Although the school building
took up most of our time, we
also managed to squeeze a lot
of other activities into our trip.
Every other day, we got the
opportunity to play with the
children after school. Their
uniforms were torn and tattered and only a few of the
children had shoes, but they
were excited to play with us.
From the shy 1st grader to the
8th grade prefect, the kids were
an amazingly energetic bunch
who enthusiastically ran after
the soccer ball in droves and
made us slow foreigners chase
them in “Twiga, Twiga,
Ndovu” (Our African version
of “Duck, Duck, Goose”).
“Cycle!” they would chirp
cheerfully as we told them to
make a circle, screaming and
grabbing our hands as they
formed a circle. They would
mouth along the lyrics to the
songs we taught them, not
knowing what the words meant
but trying their hardest anyway.
They taught us their games too,
from simple “catch the rock”
games to more danceorientated games and even a
tug-of-war/London-Bridgekind of game.
We also learned much about
the culture and lifestyle of the
average Kenyan family. By haggling for the gaudiest fluorescent green shoes at the local
market and visiting a traditional
Kenyan home and learning
how to grind millet, we were
able to get a small taste of their
way of life. We even had the
privilege of watching
our camp staff slaughter a goat for us (not a
pretty sight, I must
say). Along the way,
we were also given a
Swahili lesson and had
a short talk by Sammy
about the Maasai culture. It was heartening
to learn that early marriages were becoming a
thing of the past. Still,
many people we met
were surprised to find
that we teenagers were
still unmarried and that
none of us had more
than two siblings.
But on a more somber
note, the real shock was the
living conditions; it is one thing
to read about poverty in the
comfort of our homes and
another thing to see it in real
life. Due to the drought, many
of the crops had failed and the
people were starving. Also,
many children had to make a
choice between education and
getting water, as large numbers
of kids had to go farther and
farther to find water. Moreover, the water that they used
was highly unsanitary: it contained animal waste, pesticide
runoff, pollutants and a host of
other nasty things. But the
Kenyan people were not awash
in self-pity; they simply took it
all in stride and tried to make
the best of it.
All in all, it was an amazing and
eye-opening trip; I certainly got
more of the trip than I could
ever have imagined. We might
not have been able to finish the
school or make an immediate
difference in the Kenyan people’s lives, but we came back
inspired, knowing that we
helped to make some improvements in the lives of these children. Should this opportunity
come again next Spring Break,
I strongly encourage all of you
readers out there to take the
chance to improve the lives of
the lesser fortunate; as Gandhi
once said, “We must be the
change we wish to see in the
world.”
May 7th, 2009
WEST SIDE STORY
School Life
The Ivy—Page 3
The Ivy—Page 4
School Life
May 7th, 2009
A SNAPSHOT OF SMUS
May 7th, 2009
School Life & Spor ts
The Ivy—Page 5
S M U S C R E W — R O C K I N G T H E B OAT
By Alicia Pawluk
Until recently, most of the
school thought the rowing season ended in November. For
the majority of the team, it did,
and ended just as any other
term sport does. However,
after a sweeping victory at the
City Championships in November, SMUS decided to take its
rowing team to the next level of
competition. Under the direction of Susanne Walker Curry,
Richard Curry, Suzy Hall, and
Jill Dearden, a dedicated group
of individuals have been working away on the ergometers
(rowing machines) since early
December. Practices took place
six days a week, and varied
from intense strength training
at Compton Sports Training to
flexibility and conditioning
yoga at Commonwealth Place.
Of course, the team also spent
time on the water, working in
both sweep (one oar per person) and sculling (two oars per
person) boats. The team has
competed at various regattas
since January; the Elk Lake
Spring Regatta, Duelling Over a
Grand, Maple Bay Regatta, and
most recently, the international
Brentwood Regatta. Having
shown promise since the very
beginning, the team has
achieved many great finishes,
including first place at Brentwood in the women’s double
and eight. The stunning finish
scored the team an invitation to
the very selective Windermere
Cup Regatta in Seattle. What is
important to understand is that
not only do most crews train
for great lengths of time before
medaling at these regattas, but
also come from as far away as
Bermuda and Australia to compete. It is evident that what the
SMUS Crew pulled off at
Brentwood was nothing short
of phenomenal. Athletes rowing for SMUS are: Liz Fenje,
Lexi McColl, Jonathan Cunningham (all in grade 12), Mary-
ann Watson, Caryn Dooner,
Rachel Ellis, Jessica Spoor,
Sydney Stockus, Brandon
Ewonus (all in grade 11),
Mickey Aylard, Maxim Ellison,
(both in grade 10) and Chris
Fenje (coxswain--grade 8).
Additionally, another group of
SMUS rowers elected to join
the Victoria City Rowing Club.
Offering various levels of competition, the club has one hundred and fifty junior athletes
from across Victoria, ranging
from grade 7 to 12. It also has
athletes competing at the Senior (19+ years old) and Masters
(27+ years old) levels. Competing at the Junior A National
level (6 practices a week), Sean
Wiggins, Scott Swinkels, (grade
12) and Alicia Pawluk
(coxswain –grade 11) all row
with the varsity men’s crew. So
far, they have also had a very
successful season, bringing in
medals from the men’s quad
(sculling) and four (sweeping)
events. Earlier this year, Alicia
Pawluk also had the opportunity to race with the Master’s
crew at the prestigious Head of
the Charles in Boston, the largest two-day regatta in the
world. Also racing for the Victoria City Rowing Club this
spring are Rick Stolle (grade 10)
and Sara Taylor (grade 9).
Showing promise at the youngest levels of competition are
Erynn Pawluk, Taylor Ellison,
Liam Hyatt, Luke Friswell, Steven Whillans and Monty Fraser
-Brown (all in grade 8) from the
Middle School. Victoria City
Rowing Club was named the
fastest Canadian crew at the
Brentwood Regatta.
One last accomplishment
worth mentioning is the athletes that received invitations
from Rowing BC Junior Development camp and Rowing Canada Junior National Team camp
over spring break. Mickey Aylard, Maryann Watson, Caryn
Dooner, Alicia Pawluk, Maxim
Ellison and Liz Fenje all attended the Junior Development
camp; Liz also attended the
Junior National Team camp.
As exciting as the season has
been so far, there is more to
come. In late May, the SMUS
rowers from both teams will
unite to row under the school’s
name at the Canadian Secondary School Regatta Association Championships, known as
Schoolboys. This is essentially
the National Championships
and is the peak of the SMUS
rowing year. Based on racing
thus far, SMUS will have an
excellent team of top calibre
athletes representing our
school. Stay posted for the results. Vivat!
COME TOGETHER CONTINUED
(Continued from page 1)
cultural experiences to bring
you the tastes of many countries. Food from India, Japan,
China, Korean, Greece, Italy,
and Jamaica is to be served. It’s
your one-stop tour around the
world! What more could an
avid traveler want? Everything
you would want from a visit to
a foreign country without either
the jet-lag or the language barrier. We at the spring fair, have
the best of both worlds.
For those gamblers out there
that love the exhilaration of
lotteries and the excitement of
winning something big (or
those that are too young to buy
any tickets), the spring fair is
for you too!. We will have raffle
tickets on sale that are $5 each.
The top prize is one week in
San Jose del Cabo, Mexico.
You will get to stay in a luxury
2-bedroom condo surrounded
by the ocean, desert, and trees.
(Trust us, we’re not joking.)
There are three separate pools
at the complex and the umbrellas will provide shade! The second prize is a 9′6” Inflatable
Zodiac With an Aluminum
Bottom valued at $1,020. The
third prize is a 32G iPod touch,
and the last prize is a Nintendo
Wii. And for just $5 a ticket,
any of these prizes could leave
you with many more memories
than a Venti caramel macchiato
from Starbucks.
A side note for parents: if you
have little children and have
run out of ideas for how to
entertain your child, the spring
fair offers many fun things for
kids. It might be a time to relax.
And for the kids: a chance to
get away from the activities
your parents think are fun for
you. Whichever the case, the
Fair can be your solution.
The Spring Fair is undoubtedly
a place for everyone. Whether
you are connected to the Spring
Fair in some way or another,
you should definitely decide to
make an appearance. Since it is
a huge event in the SMUS community, you should bring as
many people as you can. Bring
your friends and family. Bring
your neighbours. Bring the
people you met on the bus last
night where you compared
Pokémon game stats. Wherever
you are, one thing I can tell you
is, you got to be free, come
together, right now.
The Ivy—Page 6
S p o r t s & Fa s h i o n
May 7th, 2009
TOUGH ME UP: OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP AND WINTER CAMP
By Michael Ip
I love the outdoors. I’m not
talking about the “we should
take a drive around town and
admire the scenery” kind of
outdoors. I mean more than
that. The type of outdoors I
love is being in the midst of
nature – the visceral feeling you
get when your legs are halfsoaked in mud while hiking on
the 75-kilometre West Coast
Trail, or spending half the day
hiking up a snowy mountain
with your skis, and skiing back
down in 8 minutes. This is the
outdoors I love. This is Outdoor Leadership.
The most experience I have
had with the outdoors before
Outdoor Leadership was the
SMUS’ Experiential Program in
Grade 10 (highly recommended
to you students in grade 9 for
next year). Before that, it was
SMUS’ out trips in grade 6-9,
and before that, it was camping
with my family. I love all that
the outdoors brings: the tranquility, the sense of achievement, the exercise, the miserable feeling you sometimes get
but have to soldier through, the
sights and sounds, the fresh air,
the warmth, the cold, the experience of making your own
choices, and the experience
itself. This is why I joined Outdoor Leadership in Grade 11.
Outdoor leadership teaches you
how to prepare for a trip, and
how to make it a fun and exciting trip. You also learn to handle certain difficult situations,
such as dealing with injuries,
bad group dynamics, and more.
You don’t need any experience,
just a love for the outdoors,
and a wish to learn how to ex-
perience the wilderness. Outdoor Leadership does not take
up time in your timetable, so
anyone can choose it.
In Grade 11, Outdoor Leadership basically comprises two
trips (in addition to your Grade
11 out trip): the Winter Camp,
and the May Leadership Trip.
At the start of Grade 11, if you
want to make it in to Outdoor
Leadership your choice of
grade trip is limited to non-day
trips. After your Grade Trip,
not much happens until Term
2. You will have a couple
“Thursday night sessions,”
during which you learn certain
skills, such as setting up a tarp,
and what leadership really entails.
Then you will have your Winter
Camp. The Winter Camp is one
of the major components of
Outdoor Leadership, and also
one of the most fun. I’m talking hiking up a snowy mountain with your skis, setting up
camp, building snow kitchens,
wearing snow booties (if you’re
in Outdoor Leadership or the
Pilot Program, you know how
awesome they are), hot water
bottles, building snow shelters
to sleep in (instead of your
tent), alpine starts, and ping
pong. Just like every outdoor
trip, it is hard to explain your
experiences through words, but
it was a great experience.
For the May Trip you can
choose from four different
trips: canoeing, hiking, kayaking, and skiing. All trips have
the same objective: to test your
leadership skills. During this
excursion, you will be leading a
part of the trip, with minimal
help from the guides (they are
not called leaders now,
YOU’RE the leader), and it will
require all your initiative, skill,
and intelligence to lead your
group through the day. It is, in
essence, your cumulative “test”
as a leader. After this trip, you
will lead out trips in the beginning at Grade 12, and then you
can call yourself an Outdoor
Leader!
I F Y O U H AV E T O A S K , T H E N Y O U P R O B A B LY S H O U L D N ’ T D O I T
By April Hall
Gone are the days of curling and setting one’s hair before boarding an airplane. Women wear heels to the supermarket no longer. The
era of the hat (not counting toques and baseball caps) has come and gone, and for men ties are now optional. About an hour ago I went
to the pet store after dance class (wearing very short shorts and knee high socks) and I think the last time my father suited up on a Saturday was for my friend’s little brother’s Bar Mitzvah. It’s just a fact that sometime between the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and
yesterday, fashion changed. Not only did it change in appearance, but it also changed in function. It is no longer about looking clean,
presentable, respectable, and sophisticated, it’s about being either a) comfortable, b) a total
fashion plate, or c) a complete non-issue altogether. I think I can safely say that this refocusing
of fashion is directly correlated to the refocusing of our culture in general. Back in the day, it
was considered unbelievably disrespectful for a child to address an adult by his or her first
name, but now who doesn’t have at least one friend whose parents he or she calls by first name
or…gasp…just calls Mom and Dad? Obviously, a massive casualization (yes, I get to make
words up) of culture has taken place, and it’s reflected in pretty much everything we do. Even
the way that I am writing (and by writing, I mean typing) this article is extremely casual.
O.K. so, like, my question is, like is that O.K.? I mean, like, the way I’m all like like and stuff.
You know? Cuz like this is like the school newspaper n all…
I never actually talk, let alone write, like that (I hope!), but it did get my point across about
where our boundary is for written language. In a culture where things that were once unfathomable, such as wearing jeans beyond one’s legal property line, have become less important than
(Continued on page 7)
May 7th, 2009
Fa s h i o n
The Ivy—Page 7
IF YOU HAVE TO ASK CONTINUED
(Continued from page 6)
the difference between Fruity
Cheerios and Fruit Loops (and
by the way, there is one), it can
sometimes be hard to know
what is acceptable or when the
line has been crossed and inappropriate territory is being infringed upon. Of course, this is
merely my scholarly (yes, I get
to flatter myself) attempt to
explain the root causes of, and
henceforth a perfect segue into
a commentary about, most of
my fashion pet peeves. And I’m
only half-joking. Regardless,
this is my disclaimer and offering of clemency for anyone
who has committed any of the
following fashion faux-pas. I
am probably guilty of most of
them more than once. I know
how they happen, and I know
that they are not intended to be
malicious, or to offend anyone.
That said, summer (aka the
number one season for dressing
inappropriately) is coming up,
so watch yourself.
Short
Shorts –
I love
them! I
run in
them, I
dance in
them, I
sleep in
them, heck, I might even wear
them to Tim Hortons if I’m
feeling that lazy, but for goodness sakes I DO NOT WEAR
THEM TO THE AIRPORT! I
have actually seen girls deplaning (albeit usually getting back
from Cancún) in the cutest little
Abercrombie denim cut-offs.
Honestly, they look cute at the
mall in the summer, but you
really don’t need to be showing
that much leg in the airport.
Not to mention, you do realize
that tons of random people sit
on those Air Canada seats for
extended periods of time in
more than hospitable tempera-
ture and humidity conditions
and they (the seats, not the
people) don’t exactly get laundered that often (read: never)
right?
Tunics/
Kaftans/
Coverups/
Towels –
If it were
made to cover your bathing suit
at the beach, then chances are
that it doesn’t cover nearly
enough of your body to constitute ample clothing in which to
leave the confines of your
home/hotel or the beach itself.
It’s sad but true. On the bright
side, if you slip a pair of white
capris on with your bathing suit
you can go just about anywhere
you like.
The NoShirt Shirt
– Once
again, you
can totally
rock this
look on the beach, and ONLY
the beach, provided you are
male. Well, you can also do the
no-shirt thing in your car if you
really want, on the way home,
but if the walk back to the car
takes more than 3 minutes
from the time your feet leave
the sand, then sorry guys, but
you have to put the old shirt
back on. And don’t even get
me started about not wearing a
shirt in town! If you’re feeling
toasty, throw on a sleeveless
shirt, but you have to wear
something. I don’t care how
great your abs became this year
courtesy of Mr. Primrose; NO
ONE is allowed to walk around
town half-naked. End of story.
Leggings – First of
all, I would like to
point out that there
is a significant difference between leggings and tights. Leggings are made of
much thicker material and are a
closer relative to the pant,
whereas tights will never suffice
as badunkadunk coverage. Second, there are many ways to
wear leggings, but I am currently referring exclusively to
leggings when paired with a
tank top or t-shirt and possibly
cardigan. I am just reminding
you that unless you have some
super fancy long tunic/dress/
skirt thing going on, leggings
are very, very casual. So please,
don’t wear them out for dinner.
Super Baggy Jeans (or even
worse: SHANTS) that Reveal
Most of
Your
Boxers –
It’s pretty
sad that I
even
have to
mention
this one, but I’ve seen it…more
than thrice. Just for the record,
occidental culture is SO not
ready for these yet (and hopefully won’t be for several centuries) and they are therefore
inappropriate at all times. That
said, if you have to do it, buy a
belt. Or just never anywhere
but the mall or your friend’s
house. You may not wear them:
at work, in any restaurant, at
any store (apart from the one
that sells the darn things), or
within 16 metres of anyone
over the age of 34.
Skinny Pants on Boys – I
love wearing skinny
jeans! But
that doesn’t
mean you,
in the case
that you are
male,
should.
Honestly,
super
skinny pants
make you
look super,
well, skinny. Whilst the turn
sideways and disappear, waif-y
because you are actually thinner
than the wafer part between the
cream stuff in those cookies
that come in pink, yellow, and
brown but all taste like cardboard anyway is in style right
now for girls, that doesn’t mean
I’m going to guys get away with
it. Alas, if you really want to
look like the Jonas Brothers…
Jeans
and
Skirt
Combo
– I’m
mentally
cataloguing
all of the
feasible
reasons why someone would
do this (wear a skirt OVER a
perfectly good pair of jeans),
and have come up with the
following: 1) she is cold and in
a spontaneous fit of delirium
figured that this would somehow keep her warmer, 2) she is
hiding several small children, 3)
she doesn’t want to lose today’s game of strip poker, 4)
she wants to annoy me, or,
most probably, 5) she forgot
she was still wearing jeans when
she put her skirt on.
Socks with Sandals – If you
do
this,
you
know
who
you
are.
And you know it’s not okay. So
stop it. Now.
I hope that clears up a thing or
two for you, my fashionable
readers. Sometimes, the
boundaries just need to be written down in order not to be
crossed. As for the title of this
article, it is my advice for you
with regards to fashion… and
life in general.
Future
The Ivy—Page 8
U N I V E R S I T Y O F W E S T E R N O N TA R I O — I N T E RV I E W
WITH SMUS ALUMNUS ANDREW CROW
By Emily Yoon
A lot of
you in
grades 911 probably already
thought
about
going to
university. Perhaps you have
also thought about applying to
the University of Western Ontario, one of the favourites
among SMUS grads and one of
Canada’s leading universities.
But have you ever wondered
why so many grads choose
UWO? This interview will help
you learn more about UWO
and what makes it so popular.
1. How do you like the University of Western Ontario so
far?
So far I have really enjoyed
Western. At times I have felt
homesick, but that is expected.
Western is a great school academically, socially, and a great
learning experience.
2. Why did you choose
UWO?
I chose Western mainly because
of the great business program
that I was pre-accepted to, the
Richard Ivey School of Business. Further more, I had many
friends already at Western who
helped me by answering some
questions and convinced me it
was a good university. Rugby
was another deciding factor;
although the level of play is not
as good as it is in B.C., it is still
a competitive league.
3. What did you do to prepare for UWO?
I did not visit Western before
deciding to come. I simply
went online to check things out
and asked people lots of questions about the university.
4. How do you feel about
your classes and professors?
Some classes are good, some
not so good. I have to
take some mandatory
classes that don’t appeal
to me because of the
program I am in. That
being said, it’s not too
bad. The professors are
good, but you don’t
really get to know them
that well, as you do at
SMUS because there are
often over 200 students
in your lectures. It is the
Teacher Assistants
(TAs) that you want to
get to know well and ask
for help.
school is pretty upbeat. If I
could sum it up, I would have
to say it is a “work hard, play
hard” kind of school.
6. What campus activities do
students participate in at
UWO?
Campus activities are for you to
choose. There are countless
volunteer jobs, intramurals,
social groups, you name it.
During O-week, you will be
treated to free concerts, fair
grounds, food, comedy shows,
dance shows, body painting,
graffiti artists... Western put
over $1 million in to entertainment activities for last year’s Oweek.
7. What is the general atmosphere of the school?
The general atmosphere at the
Facts About UWO
Motto: Vertias et Utilitas
(Truth and usefulness)
Established: 1878 Western University of London.
Now named The University of Western Ontario.
Type: Public
Endowment: $325.308
million
Chancellor: John
Thompson
President: Paul Davenport
Faculty: 1,249
Undergraduates: 25, 000
Postgraduates: 5,000
Location: London, Ontario, Canada
5. What are the dorms,
dining halls and other
facilities like?
The facilities are nice. Western
provides a lot of choices for
dorms. You can go to Saugeen
a.k.a. the “zoo” with 1600 students or to a more centralized
dorm like Delaware with 450
students. And Western has just
built a fantastic new gym worth
over $50 million.
May 7th, 2009
8. Do you like London? If so,
what do you like about it?
Personally, I don't find the city
too appealing; parts of it are
nice, but you don't really ever
need to travel into the city for
any reason. There are some
really nice malls close to campus. Oh, and it gets cold. Be
prepared for snow.
9. Any advice for UWO
hopefuls? For prospective
UWO students?
My advice is to stay on top of
your schoolwork. Do your assigned readings before class and
try not to fall behind. Enjoy the
experience at whichever university you choose but remember
to work hard. SMUS really
helps guide people to success.
Now, at university, it is up to
you to be successful. No one is
holding your hand anymore to
the finish line; it is up to you. It
is a great experience.
Campus: Urban/
Suburban—1.6 km²
Sport Teams: Western
Ontario Mustangs
Colours: Purple and
White
Mascot: Mustang
Affiliations: ACU,
AUCC, IAU, G13, COU,
CIS, CUSID, OUA, Fields
Institute, CBIE, CUP
Website: www.uwo.ca
Ar ts
May 7th, 2009
The Ivy—Page 9
Vernal Verses
Wi n n e r s
“Sakura Promise”
Cicada swoops down
From the blooming cherry tree.
My shoulders hold you.
—B r e n d a T o n g
A violin falls
Shattering into petals:
Beethove n translated.
—L i n d a Y u
Ru n n e r s - u p
“Boring Immortality”
In Elysian
on the field of asphodel
is there ever spring?
—C h a r l e s L e i t z
Heavy blossoms drop,
the charcoa l asphalt now pink,
Feet crush earth’s new path
—C h a r m a i n e N i e w e r t h
“Haiku for Springtime”
The grass coming out
The cherry blossoms falling
The mower cuts through
—D a v i d S e d l e y
HAIKU
Honourable Mentions
A gust of wind picks up
violently shaking the spider’s web
like a house in a hurricane
—E r i c B e b a n
“Flower”
In spring…
The cherry blossoms’ pink
petals open their lips,
Leaning in for the sun’s
kiss…
Twenty more minutes
And the horizon will be
Swallowed by darkness
—B i a n c a I p
“Spring”
Cherry blossoms fall
As the breeze cuts them
through
Bee buzzed on my palm
—P u r n i J u n g
“Mess”
My bedroom door stands
open
The mess just flowing out
of it,
It’s spring
—C a n d i c e C o o p e r
“Shifting Gears”
I flick the switch, to
smear the last flake of winter
off the windshield
—G e o r d i e D a f o e
“The Sky is blue”
Few floating white clou ds
In the lovely light blue sky
I can’t find the sun
—S t a c i e H o i
“In the Spring Time”
Buzz of school ending
Getting ready to go home
The students are bugs
The sun and that smell
They won’t get out of my
face
Vibrant colours spring
—Emily Ready
Summer’s sun above
Crisp green blades below my
feet
Seagull poops on me
—Charles Southwell
“Wedding”
The white orchard
dancing in the silver light
A promise is made.
—S o p h i e Y e a t e s
Ar ts
The Ivy—Page 10
Vernal Verses
POETRY
Winner
Childhood
My emotions of the time faintly echo,
and I remember their vibrance
as a faded entity, separate
to the images they evanesce from.
Like an old photograp h, my field
is shad owy and twilit under a mellow sun,
and cannot be seen any other way.
A heightened breeze
entrances my tulips, as they
wax and wane in a calm, unending dirge.
—Eric Protzer
Ru n n e r- u p
When the persimmon tree opens
l i t t l e ye l l ow f l owe r s
The sunlight seeps through the paper door
covering a face wrinkled with age, memories and
thoughts.
Grandma stretches her bent back,
making huge sigh noises.
She sweeps the front yard:
yellow pollen, dusts from winter, fur of the dirty
dog
and she picks up little yellow flowers from the
persimmon tree
and ties them togethe r so carefully to make a
necklace
the memor y of her childhood leaves a soft smile
on her face
and the spring breeze drops flowers around her
like snow
—M o n i c a L e e
P E T R A K E N N E Y P O E T RY
C O M P E T I T I ON
1ST PLACE WINNER
Mid-Autumn Eve
As I gaze into the darkness
that is the empty spac e above my bed,
I try to recollect
a view of a rolling hill of flowers.
May 7th, 2009
Back home, in China,
where the heart lies
though my presence fades, memories, like
muted shadows, waver behind paper screens,
their distorted whispers still tickling.
A simple room, brick walls and roof,
a tungsten light that leers over
lilting waves of laughter, another wave
starting before the last one dies.
Varnished oak doors swing inward,
beckoning neighbours
to enter from shadowed halls,
their shoes stacked as
poker chips.
Behind kitchen shutters,
clouded year after year in oil and vapour,
metal knives strike
against marble counters,
the grease-lacquered wok
spits fat out its lip,
fire flashes from the stove’s
glowing embers.
TV trumpets in tune with children
vying for attention, no match for
the solid table squared and dressed,
salty and sweet and sour heat that wafts up
in tendrils to make all eyes water.
Grandma, Grandpa, that cousin I never met,
drawn from their hives to bask in the
sugar-sweet sunshine of one another,
all converging this Mid-Autumn Eve
under a ripe, round moon, ready
to fall from soot-black skies.
Their hums strain across the Pacific,
ghosts treading among my thoughts,
notes calling for my return.
—Vickie Yang
E nv i r o n m e n t
May 7th, 2009
The Ivy—Page 11
SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT
By Vickie Yang
“The food we eat should taste
good; it should be produced
without harms to the environment, animal welfare, or our
health; and food producers
should receive fair compensation for their work.” –Brett
Anningson
I am in the minority. Not because of my skin or race but
solely because I can use the
term “slow food” accurately.
When I first declared to a
friend, “I’m going to write
about slow food,” her response
was, “Oh, food is a great topic.
What cuisine is that?” Similar
exchanges with others confirmed that this girl was not an
anomaly. I quickly realized that
for the majority of the populace, “slow food” remains an
ambiguity. It saddens me to
think that, with all the “green”
plans sweeping our world, Slow
Food—a movement which
epitomizes the 21st century idea
of clean living—is still so alien.
I was even once required to
explain that masticating the
contents of dinner at a snail's
pace does not constitute “slow
food.” As one reporter puts it;
“Slow Food’s primary focus
isn’t on saving endangered spe-
cies, but on saving endangered
ways of life which revolve
around the stomach.” (Bradbury, 2006) Therein
lay the genius of the Slow Food
way; followers believe that “a
firm defence of quiet material
pleasure is the only way to oppose the universal folly of Fast
Life. [That] our defence should
begin at the table with Slow Food
[because] this is what real culture is all about: developing
taste rather than demeaning
it.” (Slowfood.com) In a world
of dying traditions, shrinking
biodiversity and crazy health
epidemics, our problems are
numerous and impossible to
rank. Slow Food doesn’t try; it
tackles multiple issues at once.
This revolution can help heal
our world, our bodies, and
make our future on Earth a
more sustainable one. That’s a
very tempting package.
Before Eric Schlosser and
“Supersize Me” made McDonald’s a dirty word, before
“organic” became a supermarket staple, there was a journalist
and his vision of “good, clean
and fair food.” (Slowfood.com)
Originally created in 1986 by
Carlo Petrini to promote local
Italian fare, Slow Food has
become an international organization “dedicated to saving
regional cuisine and products
of the world.” (Chadwick,
2002) For those who’ve never
heard of Slow Food, the concept is hard to grasp. Slow
Food isn’t necessarily about
organics or fair trade or even
saving ecosystems. Slow Food
represents that and more. One
only needs to skim the organization’s website to realize the
breadth of its reach. As Petrini
once declared, “Slow Food
should not be merely a gastronomical organization but deal
with problems of the environment and world hunger without
renouncing the right to pleasure.” (Stille, 2001)
Certainly, Slow Food has made
headway in restoring our environment. Among the organization’s many initiatives is a list of
endangered foods. Combined
with its international project,
Ark of Taste, Slow Food aims
to bring back and educate the
public on time-honored flavours. Take the Piedmontese
cows for example. Slow Food
helped the Italian farmers to
plan and adapt their traditional,
hormone-free methods so that
they qualified for organic labeling. (Stille, 2001) In
Canada, Slow
Foodists like Saskatchewan farmer
Marc Luiselle have
managed to revive
Red Fife Wheat, a
heritage grain that
was nearly wiped out
in the face of industrial farming
(Bradbury, 2006) By
advocating for quality over quantity and
reviving traditional
practices that respect
the environment,
Slow Food is fighting the homogenization of modern food
production. These
artisan producers are better
stewards of the land than agribusiness corporations. Campaigns such as the aforementioned could end up saving the
biodiversity of our world.
What’s good for the land is
usually also good for the body.
Mother Nature sure didn’t invent Fluffernutters and Cheezwiz. Since Slow Food is good
for the land, hypothetically
speaking, it should also help us
resolve the health crises sweeping the industrialized world.
Right now, we need all the help
we can get. It seems to me that
the more advanced a country is,
the more problems its citizens
have with taking care of themselves; case in point, the Western diet. In North America, we
have gravitated to processed,
ready to eat, nutritionally
stunted substances. An average
diet lack greens but does a stellar job of providing saturated
fats. And we wonder why 70%
of the population is overweight
and over a third are obese.
(Hungry Planet) Well, according to a Canadian Community
Health Survey, one quarter of
adults and one third of teens did
eat from a fast food restaurant
in the last 24hrs. (Bradbury)
People on a Western diet versus a more traditional one—
take your pick: Chinese, Japanese, Italian, it doesn’t matter,
as long as it’s not American—
have been shown to suffer increased rates of cancer, heart
disease, diabetes and obesity.
Those are four out of ten leading killers in America and
they’re directly correlated with
what we put in our mouths.
(Pollan, 2007) Bottom line,
food has become “industrial,
capitalist and extremely large
scale”—a second thought in
our busy lives. (Bradbury, 2006)
But America isn’t a lost cause
yet. Through smaller, localized
events like tastings, chef dem(Continued on page 12)
The Ivy—Page 12
E nv i r o n m e n t
May 7th, 2009
SLOW FOOD MOVEMENT CONTINUED
(Continued from page 11)
onstrations, educational lectures and schools visit, Slow
Food is bringing the public face
to face with their chow. Our
own Vancouver Island is a veritable breeding ground with
gatherings like Food and Wine
Fest, Chocolate Fest, and yes,
an annual International Beer
Festival. These kinds of handson experiences create connections between people and their
food and make us care about
what we consume. It’s a positive cycle: people are exposed
to new products (products
which are minimally processed),
demand is created for the product, farmers/producers get
sustainable income, and everyone leaves happier. A trip to a
farmers’ market is indubitably
more memorable than a brochure or billboard in the same
way that online dating can’t
replace a face to face rendezvous. You don’t commit to
someone by looking at their
dating profile, so why trust
your well-being to a corporate
producer?
In the past decade alone, America has seen a notable shift with
the proliferation of farmers
markets, microbreweries and
organic groceries. Now the
USA has its own Slow Food
superstar; a kind of Marilyn
Monroe meets Mother Teresa.
Alice Waters first made headlines with her famous Berkeley
restaurant Chez Panisse, which
for 35 years has served a fixed
daily menu based on what was
locally available. Then, Waters
started school garden programs
to teach kids biodiversity and
mindful eating from the ground
up. Waters is now vice president of Slow Food International. She is truly “Slow Food
down to her bone marrow.” (Stille, 2001) Waters’
influence has extended as far as
Washington D.C. The Obamas
recently took her suggestion of
a White House garden seriously
and have started one. As Dan
Barber, owner of an organic
restaurant in New York notes,
“the power of Michelle Obama
and the garden creates a very
powerful message about eating
healthy and more delicious
food. [And that] could translate
into real change.” (Burros,
2009) As people begin to focus
on a more organic way of eating, they are also eliminating
pesticides, unpronounceable
chemicals and artificial preservatives which are a source of
our health issues. The Slow
Food Manifesto is helping us
rediscover food, leading us to
healthier lives. Call it detox for
the masses.
Cynics in the crowd are probably searching for the fine print
in this arrangement. We get to
eat better tasting foods, improve our health AND help
save the planet; it sounds so
simple there must be a catch.
As critics are quick to point
out, Slow Food isn’t flawless. If
your version of gourmet is a
double patty, extra cheese, bacon topped Whopper and a
side of large fries you may very
well see the Slow Food revolution as the “Food Nazi.” If you
are struggling to make ends
meet in this downturned economy, you aren’t likely to want
to spend extra time and money
on expensive foodstuff. And if
you are anything like the many
over-tasked, highly stressed
employees in today’s corporate
world, you’re more likely to
want to decompress than spend
precious hours cooking after
work. In the wake of cutbacks,
rising food prices and increasingly hectic lifestyles, Slow
Food has more than a few
mountains to climb.
Before it can reach the masses,
Slow Food must first overcome
the elitist brush it’s been
painted with. Organic and local
produce can be more expensive
and is seen as a luxury. As a
result, Slow Food is often
equated with the rich, indulgent
class. In our present economy,
people trying to keep food on
the table won’t be too picky
about how it was produced.
But it doesn’t have to be that
way. You don’t have to buy
strictly organic; you could buy
products from your province or
country. Doing so will bring
your food closer to home, cut
down on the carbon footprint
and support homegrown businesses.
Granted, those in the lowest
income bracket, one step from
utter poverty, will find this hard
to believe. Don’t despair.
Mickey D’s isn’t the only option. Try buying hearty foods
like potatoes or grains in bulk;
ten pounds of potatoes costs
less than seven dollars. Try
buying vegetables and fruits in
season. Who wants to pay extra
for sour strawberries in winter
anyway? Try eating less red
meat and more soy. If even
vegans can get enough protein,
do you really need a 14 oz. porterhouse? Lastly, think of these
expenditures as an investment
in yourself and your family
because, for every action, there
must be a consequence. Bad
eating habits can lead to health
problems and obesity, which
then leads to big piles of medical bills. If you spend a little to
eat well now, you stand to save
a lot more down the
road.
Slow Food has also gone
to great lengths to be
more accessible to local
communities. We actually see the organization’s influence everyday, in fair trade, organic
products, weekend
farmers’ markets, even
on a favorite restaurant’s
seasonal menu. With the
widespread promotion,
it is no longer intimidating for
people to attend events like
food and wine festivals. Slow
Food has been brought down
from its pedestal and handed to
the common man.
It remains to be seen if Slow
Food will become a household
term or fade, like the bygone
hippies, into the woodworks of
history. The deciding factor in
this whole equation is human
motivation and, as much as I
hate to say it, we are selfish
creatures. We like to take up
causes which promise maximum benefits for minimum
work. Luckily, Slow Food is in
line with that sentiment. We all
value our health, we all have a
vested interest in the health of
our planet, and we welcome the
satisfaction that comes from
being part of a global solution.
Slow Food doesn’t ask us to
sacrifice material pleasure; it
may even enhance our quality
of living by giving us alternatives. The more mainstream
Slow Food becomes, the more
widely accepted its ideas will be.
I’m not asking for you to follow the Slow Food Manifesto
to the letter, but surely we can
adopt its basic principles of
“good, clean and fair” into our
lives. We all need food to live
but we don’t need to kill our
future to get it. Slow Food
done right is a win-win situation for all. And that’s a fact
you can take with you to market.
May 7th, 2009
Entertainment
The Ivy—Page 13
SINGLES SYNDROME? DON’T FRET: DRS. LOVE TO THE RESCUE!
At some point in our lives we
are all reduced to feeling lonely,
pathetic and upset over a seemingly unreachable object of our
affections. Why can’t we pin
down that man or woman
we’ve been lusting after across
the quad? It is because we become wrapped up in our emotions and consequently send
out the wrong signals. Here are
some of the classic mistakes we
make when it comes to relationships.
1) Girls often think that baring all of nature’s blessings
is a good way to attract a
man. This belief is entirely
incorrect; the type of man who
takes the commitment plunge
and is boyfriend material isn’t
the kind of guy who responds
to a full frontal body assault. This tactic is an urban
myth and leaves you feeling
unfulfilled. Respect yourself; in
the long run, you want a man
who appreciates you for you
and not just your C-cups.
2) People make themselves
too available. Technology is a
huge hindrance in any relationship because almost everyone
has a cell phone, MSN or Facebook and it is because of these
that we make ourselves too
accessible. I suggest keeping
your phone at a safe distance.
Give the person your home
phone number as your contact
and let him/her go through
your parents to get to you. Give
your cell phone number when
you can be sure that it will be
used responsibly and you won’t
be receiving inane texts at 2 in
the morning. Also, beware of
the subject matter. No one
cares that you are about to
brush your teeth.
3) Personality wins over
looks, honestly. Although the
tall, dark and handsome man
was the ideal sex symbol in the
past, today’s women seek relationships with guys they feel
comfortable around. It’s not so
much about what you look like
as the way you carry yourself,
your humor and your personality. Put yourself out there—
that’s the only way you will
learn. Rejection isn’t a negative
thing; it is simply an excuse for
someone who isn’t ready to
appreciate all you have to offer.
4) Don’t make it obvious that
you’re checking him/her
out. Here is a Dr. Love’s tip.
Make eye contact and actually
listen when talking to him/her.
The little things you learn at the
beginning of a relationship set
you up to get the perfect birthday present or
go on amazing
dates. If you
must check your
love interest out,
be discreet.
Some people
expect to be
checked out but
don’t gawk; no
one looks attractive with their
mouth open.
Also, if he/she
is eating in front
of you try to
keep your eyes
to your own plate; no one
wants to be caught with “seefood.”
5) The Mute Curse. Do you
become shy when around the
person you like? As hard as it
is, saying the wrong thing is
better than saying nothing. This
way you are at least making an
impression. If you don’t say
much, you could be misunderstood as boring or disinterested. Regardless of putting
your foot in your mouth, everyone gets a second chance; you
just have to take it!
6) The number one killer of
all high school relationships:
gossip. If you really value the
person you are with, keep the
hook-up tales to yourself. Is
everyone else there when stuff
is going down? Hopefully not.
So save your relationship and
delight in those moments.
Don’t run around school telling
all of your friends/locker-room
buddies the intimate details.
Are they dating that person?
No. This is a sign of respect for
the person you are with. Also,
if for some reason you break
up, those details aren’t to be
shared no matter how badly
you want to get back at the
person for a terrible ending.
Whatever twist you put on it,
he/she can do the same. And
this type of behavior makes
nobody look
good.
7) As corny as
it sounds, be
you. Be upfront
about your flaws,
be who you are.
Everyone has
his/her good
points and bad
points and it is
how we present
them that makes
all the difference.
If you are one
way around your
love interest and
another around your friends,
you aren’t showing that person
what you are actually like. If
that’s the case, your relationship is doomed to fail. No
sense in lying to someone for a
short term fling. Someday you
will end up with the right person and it will last longer.
Well, how do you get the appropriate love signal?
Are you a constant victim of
the single syndrome? Maybe
you are really bad at recognizing the “love signal.” Don’t
wait around for someone to
notice you, make opportunities
for yourself. This is 2009, people; girls can ask boys out too!
Here are a few ways to identify
the start of something special.
1. Does she/he like me too?
The easiest way to tell if someone likes you is if that person is
going out of his/her way to
make time for you. If someone
is trying to accommodate your
schedule into his/her own or
asking you to do things one on
one, you’ve got a crushee. Dr.
Love’s tip: If you are busy, a
sign of courtesy (if you are interested in doing something) is
to say thank you for the invitation, say that you are unable to
make it and propose another
time that would work better
and see if it works for the other
person too.
2. What kind of attraction do
we have? Are we opposites or
samezies? If you have a lot in
common, congrats, you are
samezies. If you have little in
common, use this as an opportunity to learn from each other
and experiment with new
things. Don’t be upset just because you don’t love the same
bands or sports.
3. They know more about me
than I thought. If he/she remembers small details that you
spoke about in passing, it is
certain that this person likes
you. This means that the person is keenly listening to you
when you speak to impress you
with these details later on. Be
flattered and don’t be a commitment-o-phobe. It’s flattering, not scary!
4. You’re-in-my-rear viewmirror-of-my-love bug. If you
find him/her involved in your
life more than before, maybe
this is a sneak attack. Make sure
the person is always around for
you and not for the girl or guy
that sits beside you. Ways to
tell: if he/she tries to strike up a
conversation with you or is
constantly sneaking a peek in
your direction.
Best wishes for your future and love,
Dr.& Dr. Love
Entertainment
The Ivy—Page 14
May 7th, 2009
GAME REVIEW—HALO WARS
By Gaurav Sekhon
Now, this may come off a bit
biased because I am to HALO
fans what HALO fans are to
normal people. This HALO
game, though, is not so much
about Master Chief unloading
justice into a xenophobic alien
species conglomerate as it is
about a whole bunch of spacemarines unloading justice blahblahblah. See, while every
other HALO game has been a
first-person-shooter, this one
(developed by the wellrespected Ensemble Studios
and Microsoft) is a Real-TimeStrategy (RTS) game that was
developed for the XBOX 360
“from the ground up” as Ensemble employees stated ad
nauseum in various interviews
and stuff. See, usually RTS’s are
played by people who have
absolutely no social skills and a
mouse-button-finger that
would put the most determined
woodpecker to shame while at
the same time challenging
Monica Lewinski’s multitasking abilities. This RTS was
made for the XBOX 360,
though, so the controls are
made for console gamers,
which is a nicer way of saying
they were dumbed down for
the people who aren’t geniuses
wasting their time on gaming
while they
could be
fixing
global climate
change or
planning
spectacular
Swiss bank
robberies.
But anyways:
Graphics:
The graphics are satisfactory for
an RTS,
maybe even
a little better. You
can’t zoom in and see the tears
on the marines’ faces as their
companions are blown to wherever dead bits of code go, but
you can zoom in enough to see
tracer bullets flying through the
HOROSCOPES
battlefield. The graphics do the
job, basically; they’re not amazing but they don’t disappoint,
either. That’s only the gameplay
graphics though. The prerendered cinematics actually
caused my
jaw to forcefully fly off
of my face
and hit me
in the lap,
which impressed
several surgeons who
said “that’s
not possible” to
which I
replied “you
obviously
haven’t
played Halo
Wars.” I
won’t even
describe how awesome the
cinematics are because a picture’s worth a thousand words,
and those cinematics run like,
60 pictures (frames) per second.
(Continued on page 15)
RANDOM FACTS ABOUT SHAKESPEARE
By Michael Ip
Taurus (April 20 - May 20)
You are the least stressed out
of everyone, and you can pass
your cooling qualities onto others. This is your opportunity to
give support!
Gemini (May 21-June 21)
Try doing things with a twist
today. Try taking a walk by
yourself and enjoying nature.
Try to be a new YOU! Who
knows, maybe things will
change for the better!
Cancer (June 22-July 22)
Soon there might be that time
where you need a friend…
chances are that you are going
to be a bit prickly today, so
keep your friend close!
Leo (July 23-August 22)
With the right crowd, you can
be a totally outgoing person,
lighting up the room, and thus
making yourself feel better.
Today, that crowd might not be
there, but be your sociable self
anyway!
Virgo (August 23-September
22)
-Shakespeare is listed as an actor on documents from 1592, 1598, 1603, and 1608. It is supposed that
he played mostly unassuming parts, such as the ghost in Hamlet, to allow him more time to write.
If you are focusing on your
studies, you should be. This is
the critical point in your life
and it is crucial that you concentrate on your academic
work. However, do not lose
sight of other important things
in your life!
-According to the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, Shakespeare wrote about one-tenth of the most quotable quotations ever written or spoken in English.
Libra (September 23October 22)
By Emily Yoon
-In the few signatures that have survived, Shakespeare spelled his name “Willm Shaksp,” “William
Shakespe,” “Wm Shakspe,” “William Shakspere,” ”Willm Shakspere,” and “William Shakspeare”--but
never “William Shakespeare.”
- Shakespeare's son, Hamnet, died in 1596. His daughter Susanna died in 1649.
His younger daughter Judith had three children, but all died before their
mother and without children. His granddaughter Elizabeth, daughter of
Susanna, died childless in 1670, ending the William Shakespeare line.
-Although Shakespeare is usually considered an Elizabethan playwright,
much of his greatest work was produced after James I took the throne.
Thus, Shakespeare could be more accurately considered Jacobean.
--from “Random Facts and Interesting Trivia for the Curious Mind,”
http://facts.randomhistory.com/
Looking around and seeing
everybody busy with his or her
life, you may wonder, “Where
do I fit in all this?” Don’t
worry, your search will drive
you to find something deep.
Scorpio (October 23 - November 21)
Your horizons have been very
(Continued on page 15)
Entertainment
May 7th, 2009
The Ivy—Page 15
HOROSCOPES
CONTINUED
GAME REVIEW—HALO WARS CONTINUED
(Continued from page 14)
Gameplay: You play a commander in charge of a base.
You get supplies from the overhead Spirit of Fire mothership
and you can make stuff, like
buildings that train troops, create vehicles, improve technology, or bring in more supplies.
Basically you get supplies, train
units (infantry, vehicles, etc.),
then go for the objective(s).
Objectives usually consist of
“make units, go here, kill stuff”
which is why moms should not
buy this game for their 8 year
old. It all works pretty well, but
the lack of mouse control can
easily be missed by people who
have played computer RTS
games. The battles can be quite
spectacular when there are a lot
of enemy units and an equal
amount of friendly units, and
it’s fun to watch the explosions
wide this quarter of 2009. Being
passionate about your goals is a
good thing, but don’t let things
slip out from under you. You
don’t want to lose what you
already have!
Sagittarius (November 22December 21)
Be on guard this month: big
things are bound to happen,
and if you are prepared, you
can handle them accordingly.
Keep your eyes peeled, ears
open, and you’ll be ready for
anything, good or bad!
Capricorn (December 22January 19)
You are a very forwardthinking person... some of the
time. This month, utilize this
aspect of your personality and
push it higher—then you will
shine. Don’t be afraid to stand
out!
(Continued from page 14)
COMICS
for those of us who don’t pretend to have grown out of liking explosions. You could do
all of that micromanaging and
strategizing that has killed so
many game-addicted young
men, but that’s for losers and
the XBOX 360 is for manly
men who only play video
games in the down time between varsity sports and Friday
nights.
Storyline: the HALO universe
is – for lack of a better term –
totally freaking huge, and Halo
Wars’ story is great as is the
story of the other HALO
games. It takes place before the
events in HALO: Combat
Evolved, and is mainly concerned with messing up whatever the Covenant (by the way,
the Covenant is the xenophobic
alien species conglomerate)
want to do. Again, the game-
play is still go-here-kill-stuff,
but the amazing story is told by
way of cut scenes using the
aforementioned mind-blowing
pre-rendered cinematics and
some in-game moments.
My final word: It’s fun, it looks
good, sounds good, and has a
HALO-quality storyline. The
only thing this game leaves you
wanting is slightly better controls and more HALO.
Random Word
Sesquipedalian (adj.)
1.
given to using long words.
2.
(of a word) containing
many syllables.
Emily Yoon
SUDOKU
Aquarius (January 20February 18)
This month, don’t worry about
anything and just have fun!
Well, not anything—this is AP
season, and there is still time
needed to work. But for this
moment, just take a break and
enjoy the world!
Pisces (February 19- March
20)
This May, don’t burden yourself with the issues of others.
That doesn’t mean ignore everyone around you, but you
should pay more attention to
yourself and self-improvement.
Aries (March 21 - April 19)
Today you may feel slight anger
or aggression toward your
friends, school or family. Chill
out, light up some scented candles and you will feel much
better.
Answers to Last Issue’s
Crossword
Last issue’s winners: Kieran
Sharpe & Rachel Wong
Entertainment
The Ivy—Page 16
May 7th, 2009
SPRING CROSSWORD
Like Chocolate? Be the first to
fill out the crossword perfectly
and you could receive two
Purdy’s chocolate hearts. Find
Michael Ip, or email him the
answers at michael.ip@smus.ca
the day after the Ivy is released
and distributed. Good luck !
Created by Michael Ip
Behind the Ivy
Editor-in-Chief: Emily Yoon
Editing Help: Lyn Li Che, Julie
Shim
Contributing Writers: Lyn Li Che,
Jinsun Choi, April Hall, Michael
Ip, Drs. Love, Rachel Nam, Alicia
Pawluk, Gaurav Sekhon, Vickie
Yang
Comic Artist: Shaun Kho
Crossword Manager: Michael Ip
Layout: Emily Yoon
Photographers: Erin Anderson,
Michael Jackson, Ben Kwok,
Kent Leahy-Trill, Jolanta
Lisiewicz, Judy Tobacco, Emily
Yoon
Faculty Advisors: Janice
McCachen
Disclaimer: The views and opinions
expressed by the writers do not
necessarily reflect the views and
opinions of the Ivy.
Articles, photos, opinions, adds or
quotes are welcome from all staff
and students and can be submitted
to emily.yoon@smus.bc.ca.
Across
Down
4 Fall equinox; ______ equinox
1 Flower associated with the sun
9 Colour associated with lushness
of Spring
2 Synonym for “spring” (verb)
10 Spring equinox; ______ equinox
5 “Mother _______”; in Greek mythology, Demeter has this role
12 Type of trees that line the
SMUS road (two words)
6 The season before spring
13 Wake up and smell the
"______"
14 "Spring ______, Fall Back"
15 Water that falls from the sky
16 March ______ (date) marks
the spring equinox
3 Colour of clear skies
7 The season after spring
8 Climate in coastal locations;
moderate temperature. Ex:
“______ rainforest”
11 The season between summer
and winter