Category Archives: Second Year

A Music Monday full of LOVE.

y=You guys, I have so many exciting things I want to share with you! I’ve flown to Toronto and back for We Day, been all over the place with Colour Wars and Mob kick-off events, and now here I am one full month into school. Kind of feels like Eat, Pray, Love, because of the crazy adventures I’ve had with love, passions, and travel–which brings me to this song choice. I chose Florence + the Machine’s Dog Days Are Over for today’s Music Monday because it reminds me of an extra special person in my life we shall call vcamp.

Not long ago, I started up something pretty big. A future post will hold the big announcement but, for now, what you should know is that vcamp plays an important role in this “something pretty big.” Not many people have the wonder and amazing talents that vcamp holds. Vcamp and I only met at Residence Advisor Orientation at the end of August. Already, I know, that she’s going to go far in life and I’m proud to call her one of my newest friends and project partner. One of her biggest passions (yes passion) is Florence + the Machine. While I was at We Day, I heard this song and thought of her. Immediately from looking over the ACC from the 600-level VIP lounge I sent her a text.

That text said,
“We Day equals they are totally playing Florence + the Machine and I’m thinking of you from all the way in Toronto.”

She replied,
“That is amazing! I love her and I love you :)”

This one is for you, vcamp. The best non-traditional warm fuzzy you’ll ever read. I hope you one day read this.

YouTube Preview Image

All female longboarding crew

Isn’t this video just so happy and fun that it explains my entire life?

If anyone on campus is interested in spending time with me longboarding, I’m interested in bringing my game to a new level and I’d love to be friends with you. Thanks Warren for thinking of me and sending me this link. You rock, buddy.

Truth.

The one day you try looking nicer than average to class, your belly button ring will pull threads in your new silk top from Club Monaco. All you’ll want to do is go home and watch cat videos on your friend’s facebook wall. That’s the truth.

Totem Park = Time Spent With Friends

Sometimes, I wonder how anyone living in Totem Park ever has time to get work done. From the late night requests that come to my phone saying, “Magda’s?” and me saying, “obviously.” and living within several feet of your best friends makes it difficult to want to do anything but study.

Cue momma bakes. This is where she would tell me that time management is key. I’m still trying to learn this amazing skill that momma bakes speaks of. In fact, my entire year is going to be all about focus. If you were to judge to see how well I’m doing so far, well let’s not look at the past week. I’ve been spending a lot of my time with my friends. But that’s fine, school just began and it’s good to be able to see all my friends again. From now on, it’s all about school and maybe only a few less trips to Magda’s.

Shout out to momma bakes who just celebrated her birthday. She’s a wonderful woman who knows nothing about technology but everything about time management and wise spending. Happy birthday, mom.

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.