Category Archives: All things UBC

My mind was just blown by UBC REC

If there is anything you do today, be it that you watch this video, produced by UBC REC (that deserves a Matt Corker “Boom!” to describe it).

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A huge kudos goes out to the entire Media Team at UBC REC, my past RA and current best friend Alyssa Koehn, Advising teammates in Totem Park David Protheroe and Warren Springer (the man in the video all the ladies love), who were all a part of making this video happen.

Here are other tidbits from their video shoot you might enjoy as well.

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If I was anywhere near the definition of athletic, I’d so want to do TriDu 2011 just because of these videos. If anything, I might try to drink a little more water and get a little more physical because of it.

Will there be a Block Party this year?

Once again, the AMS is in the red when it comes to its budget. The Ubyssey reports that the AMS ran a deficit of close to $375,000 last year and this year it is projected to reach close to $150,000. That’s major $$$.

With Block Party being the big hole in their pocket, the plan is to cut down the budget for the event from $115,000 to $18,500. Still, it is estimated that Block Party won’t create any sort of revenue whatsoever once again and will burn close to $20,000. Better than last year’s loss of $103,000 from the event known as “that-time-the-Barenaked-Ladies-played-at-UBC”, aka Block Party. Other ideas for making sure that there is no loss at all include cutting the end of the year event all together if the Student Life Committee, chaired by Crystal Hon, can’t prove that the event  won’t be a big black hole for cash money to be sucked into.

So what kind of game plan does the Student Life Committee and the Hon have? Marketing the event through the SLC. My thoughts? I like it. Block Party, to myself, is a sign of UBC community, unique to our campus that deserves to have someone cheering it on to being a financially-healthy and popular event (it should be considered to be an important part campus community if it is the decedent of ACF, something that happened while I was probably still in grade nine but I am told about all the time. That’s how important that event was to the lives of UBC students).

I have a few ideas in my mind of what we can do for our friend, Block Party. For one, can we try to find a way as a campus to shape Block Party into something that has more visible differences from the AMS Welcome Back BBQ? For students who aren’t a part of the bzzr garden scene, what can we offer them besides the non-drinking side of the fence? If these things are already offered, how can students know more about them to attract a wider audience to the event?

My other suggestions include giving me one of those beautiful pink lemonade Block Party shirts from last year to help promote and look fabulous in, inviting the xx or Bon Iver to play, and reaching out to other communities on campus (like SLC) to promote in new ways. I believe in the Hon, the Student Life Committee, and their ability to turn this “in the red by Block Party” thing around. By the end of it, I hope Block Party/some similar ACF event will stick around and be an annual joy/splurge event for UBCers on that last day of classes for years to come.

The Dean proves to be cool once again

Today is your first day of work as the chair of your department at NYU. You are new to New York City and your institution. You hear a large rumbling above you. Today is 9/11. What do you do?

You never know when you will be called upon to be a leader. For Dean Gage Averill of Arts at UBC, his leadership abilities were challenged that day in New York City. I’m proud to say that he did well under pressure. When he didn’t know the staff, the students, or the campus, he knew what to do. He had to make the decisions of getting emergency housing for faculty, staff and students within hours of starting his new job. He had to make quick decisions about canceling classes for the day. He had to make the most difficult discussions with no experience at NYU at all. Can you imagine doing that on your first day of work?

I’ll never stop saying it, but our Dean is so cool. He even blogs.

I asked Dean Averill how do Arts students face the trend of others dismissing the value of our degree? His answer was that our degree recognizes that we are human and we are learning how to flourish in the modern world. We are learning how to command communication across cultures. True say Dean Averill, true say. I believe that we are building dynamic leaders in arts that can adapt and flourish in any environment after post-graduation.

What do you think the strengths of an Art student is? I see us as a dynamic and powerful group. The biggest, the loudest, and the ones who are faced with life’s biggest questions in the classroom on a daily basis. Everyday. I go to class to analyze colonial dispossession. Everyday, I question why the world is the way it is. Everyday, I am challenged to read some article that I often I can’t understand at all (it’s a daily struggle) but I’m pushed to expand my way of thinking. I see value in our degree. I understand why we study the human condition. I’m proud to be in Arts.

Winter Art Market at MoA

November 15-December 24, 2010. Daily (except Mondays!)

UBC Faculty, Staff, Student and VA Sneak Preview: November 15, 1pm-4pm

Members-Only Market (20% discount for MOA members!): November 16, 10am-9pm

Experience MOA’s annual holiday sale for a dazzling selection of handcrafted and Fair Trade objects from around the world. Holiday decorations, stocking stuffers, and treats for all ages.

Shop early and meet Papua New Guinea carver Claytus Yambon (Nov 15 & 16), and 2010 World Art Market potter Clay Jung Hong Kim (Nov 16).

Rapid Transit Now.

You know how you always hear of the “Great Trek” and how this university was built by students? Dude- you can be a part of that.

I cannot express to you how passionate I am about speaking out that UBC needs rapid transit. I only wish it could come sooner. So far, UBC is at the BOTTOM of the list for rapid transit and that list goes for the next 30-40 years. Please visit this website to send an email to Metro Van and TransLink to let them know you want rapid transit too. Im not even a commuter student and I can understand the need for something more than the 99. SkyTrain baby, we need to rock one.

Music Monday

One of my favorite things about campus is how calm and beautiful it can be at night. Last night, I walked to the Starbucks at Agronomy and East Mall and spent some of my evening relaxing under the heaters outside. It reminded me of the simple pleasures of grabbing my longboard late on Saturday nights in first year and just cruising around campus until I discovered a new place or an event at the MoA. This song reminds me of just that.

Buffalo Springfield’s For What It’s Worth

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After one week of classes, these are my favorite things.

Some of my favorite things about UBC are that politically involved people are called “hacks” and often they say “totes.” I also love that the AMS Welcome Back BBQ and Block Party are exactly the same thing, no differences at all except one is in September and the other is in April. I also love that everyone goes and loves it.

I love that everyone is comfortable in their own skin. Everyone has their own style and rocks it. I love that I see more girls with longboards this year. I love that the Honour Roll (the AMS sushi place in the basement of the SUB) takes meal cards for the first time this year. I love that the Honour Roll exists, period. I love how my diet has been 90% udon and Booster Juice since I got here.

I love that Magda’s sold me a box of Dad’s cookies for $2. I love that The Ubyssey is sarcastic and fun. I love that I never want or feel the need to leave campus because it’s all right here. I love that I find more handsome men than I do in downtown Toronto (major win). I love that the Centre for Student Involvement exists. I love that we have Imagine Day, even if the goal of the day is to get the first pitcher at The Gallery. I love Totem Park. I love Anna from the Totem Dining Hall who makes the best wraps. I love UBC.

Tales of first year with mama ebakes

Hello first years, it’s mama ebakes, your wise upper year student who blogs, with tales from her first year of university.

Here’s a good story about my first day of classes.

Things were going well. I had successfully found all of my classes throughout the day without any prep beforehand. Hebb was a little bit difficult of a building to track down, but I did it all on time and with big smiles. That was until my last class of the day, Poli Sci 101, came along.

I couldn’t find Poli Sci 101 and I only had the ten minutes in between French in Buchanan and Poli Sci somewhere in the Chemistry building to find it. I started to ask random students walking by if they knew where my class was. I chose to ask guys that were in flannel (trustworthy survival skills at work) or had nice orange haired beards. None of them could help me find my class and just giggled. I didn’t mind, they looked cool as always.

It was now a half hour into my class. All I wanted to do was learn about the Canadian government and I couldn’t even find the classroom to do so. I couldn’t argue with anyone about policy or Harper, at minimum to say it was very depressing. I stood on the corner of University and East Mall, across from the Bookstore, and called my mother back in Ontario weeping that I’d never learn about the Canadian Government and that I was a major fail. It was actually a very hilarious event now that I look back on it.

I eventually found the class a few minutes after it ended. Turns out, I was looking for a classroom number that didn’t exist but I had the right building. I just had to double check my schedule (good one, Erica). I found the class as it was being let out and found this really cool prof in shiny silver Nike sneakers talking to students as they left. I tried not to show that I had been crying but when I approached the prof he just smiled and handed me the syllabus as he understood that I was a first year distraught with fear of failure. Turns out that Poli Sci 101 was my favorite class of first year and I had my highest mark (and first A) in Professor Baier’s class.

So first years, the lesson of this story is not to freak out and call your mother in Ontario and think that the world is going to end because you will fail out of UBC when you can’t find a classroom. And you can always, ALWAYS, trust big bearded men in flannel on campus. Remember those survival techniques. You will do fine.

Until next time,
mama ebakes loves you all. have a good rest of your first week.

Dean Gage “Whuddup” Averill

Move over Sauder’s Dean Dan, as sad as I am that we are without our beloved Dean Nancy Gallini as the Arts Faculty, I have to say that Dean Gage “Whuddup” Averill is pretty stellar. Yesterday, I was impressed with his Imagine Day address at the Chan centre. This man showed class and humour and I think him and Brain Sullivan (my favorite man, word to the students) should be best friends and go bowtie shopping.

Dean Gage “Whuddup” Averill, incase you are reading this because I know you sometimes frequent student blogs, I want you to know that I understand it’s not easy being the new guy in a big school, bringing me  to suggest B-Sullivan as a possible new friend for you.

So Dean Gage “Whuddup” Averill, you’re probably asking why B-Sullivan out of all the faculty and staff makes a good fit as a friend for you. Well, since it seems that Professor Alan Sens is already your pal from his funny and thoughtful introduction to your awesomeness yesterday, I thought that B-Sullivan has a lot to offer as he is one of the coolest guys on campus.

The way he sports those bowties and still understands the students after being at the university is something that resonates with me. If you have any say in the matter, please make sure B-Sullivan remains at UBC until after I graduate. Another request if you become bffs, I’m really curious to know how many bowties he actually owns and how he stores all of them. I wonder if it’s more intense than a Sex and the City shoe closet.

So when you do become bffs, and I’m sure that there is no way that two awesome and down to earth UBC champions could not be friends, please let me know how bowtie shopping goes. Dean Gage “Whuddup” Averill, I think you are a cool dude. I sat in that audience and from watching you I think that your speech brought down the academic-house.

PS, I really like the name “The Sipping Point” for the new Arts Cafe. Run with it.