Katy at UBC

My second year at UBC!

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The Buried Life at Kidsbooks

March 28th, 2012 by Katy
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So, the last time I posted about The Buried Life, I got an amazing response from readers! I thought I’d let everyone know that there’s an event next Wednesday (April 4th) at 7pm held by Kidsbooks. This is celebrating the release of The Buried Life’s new book, which you can purchase on Amazon or Kidsbooks.

The event costs $25, which covers the cost of a signed copy of the book as well as an appearance from the book’s creators. As this will be the second time I have heard them speak, I can honestly say that they’re fantastic public speakers! The event is held at OLPH gymnasium, which is coincidentally my old elementary school.

If you’d like to purchase tickets, you can do so here. It is an open event, you could show up at the door, but space is limited so I’d buy a ticket to be safe.

Katy

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Where to Study at UBC?

January 26th, 2012 by Katy
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So here’s the question – where’s the best place to study on campus? As we all know, there are certain places to study at UBC if you really want to get things done.

Personally I prefer the third floor of Koerner, because it’s open until 10pm most days and it has individual desks with a light and plugs for your laptop. It’s also a silent study floor, so if you are actually looking to work this is a good place to go. It gets really busy around midterms/exam time though, and I’ve found that peak hours are around 1-4pm in the afternoon.

I’ve also heard good things about Wood, but I’ve never been there because it’s a bit out of my way. However I have studied in the basement of the University Center, and that’s really nice. There’s a pond in the back, vending machines and tables – but the best part is that it’s always empty! A drawback is that it’s fairly out of the way for most people.

Another good one is the Law Library. Again, it’s a silent study area and it has really nice natural lighting. It depends on the time you go, but I’ve never been in the position where I couldn’t find a seat to sit. I imagine that it gets pretty busy around exam time though.

So those are some of the good ones, but what places should you avoid? I’d recommend skipping IKE, because that place is always super crowded. Obviously, no one actually goes there to study unless you’re in first year and you don’t know where else to go. It’s definitely a place to see and be seen – a lot of people use it as a social gathering place so it’s really noisy.

Another place I don’t really like is floor -1 of Koerner. It’s a group study area that’s always really busy, and it’s difficult to find a seat no matter the time of day. I also prefer an area that has some privacy, and the large tables can’t really give you that. I find it difficult to focus and get things done down there.

Finally, The Womb (above the Aquatic Center). Who goes there to study? Only go there if you plan on taking a nap, otherwise you’ll probably waste a lot of time unintentionally sleeping.

Did I miss anything?

 

 

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Balancing School and Personal Life: University Edition!

January 11th, 2012 by Katy
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Like many University students, I always feel like I’m short on time. For me, there are never enough hours in a day to accomplish what I want to do. When I first started University, I felt like it wasn’t difficult to manage my time because I wasn’t involved in much outside of school. This left me with plenty of time to complete my labs, do the readings, and finish my essays without too much stress.

However, as time has progressed I’ve added more and more extracurricular activities to my roster. To list a few things I’m currently involved with:

  • The Photography Club at UBC (Blog post coming soon)
  • UBC Blog Squad – This doesn’t take me much time, but I’m always thinking of my next post.
  • Sales Associate
  • Reading Buddies: An after school program that helps Elementary school students catch up on their reading skills.
  • Museum of Anthropology: Volunteer
I feel like there should be more on that list, but I can’t remember at the moment. Anyway, with all these things going on it becomes more difficult to separate time for school as well as these engagements. It’s also important to save time to have for friends, which is difficult for me. Sometimes I worry that my friends will forget what I look like!
For some general time management tips, I’ve found that the following things help me do things efficiently and also reduce my stress levels.
  • Make physical to-do lists. Crossing things off the list is a visual representation of how much you’ve accomplished, and it’s really satisfying seeing how much you’ve gotten done. It’s also a good way of remembering everything you need to do.
  • Do the easy jobs first. I find that it makes you more optimistic about tasks if you can get a bunch of things crossed off quickly.
  • Take breaks. If I don’t take breaks I’ll get frustrated and end up being less productive than if I’d stepped away for a couple minutes.
  • If all else fails, use the Self-Control App. This lets you block certain websites for a determined amount of time. I found that it really helped me during exam time.
I now can’t remember the exact reason for posting this, except to say that I understand how important it is to be a well rounded individual. People are always stressing the importance of a balanced lifestyle, but in the attempt to achieve this I often have to remind myself that it’s important to save time for myself. (Note my other post about TV shows I follow – it’s a way for me to relax while I make myself lunch or dinner.) Find a way to de-stress, whether it’s yoga, running or something else. Don’t be like me – make sure to take the time to connect with your friends once in a while!
What do you do to relax?
Katy
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UBC Go Global

January 10th, 2012 by Katy
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Hey all!

So I’ve been thinking about the Go Global program at UBC since first year, and the application deadline for exchange next year is drawing closer! (It’s January 18th I believe.) If you haven’t heard about Go Global, it’s an exchange program that UBC offers in conjunction with other Universities, where you can study there but pay UBC fees. This is great because it would be massively expensive to study anywhere else for a long period of time.

I’m thinking of doing the exchange program, where you basically can attend University at one of UBC’s many partner Universities. There are other programs that are available, such as Research Abroad, International Service Learning, Group Study Programs and the U21 Global Issues Program. I’ll be the first to say that I’m not too familiar with the U21 Global Issues Program because it appears to be relatively new, but on the website it says, “Take courses from seven of the world’s best universities without leaving UBC.” So it seems like you would be able to take these courses from UBC online, while getting the credit for it from another university. Don’t quote me on that. EDIT: I’ve just been told that it’s been around for at least 5 years, so it’s not that new!

Exchange: Where you can study abroad while paying UBC fees! You can visit the Partner University page about the Universities where you can study. Often this can be a little tricky, as credits from University to University do not transfer, so students going on exchange may have to do one or two extra semesters of school to graduate. Some other things to watch out for – make sure that the University you apply to takes students from your faculty, and also offers exchange in the term you want to apply for (Ex. Term 1/2.) Exchange is offered to students in their Third or Fourth years, but if you’re in Arts you can go in Second year as long as you have enough credits and are a full time student.

Co-op: I can’t find the webpage for this, but it’s similar to having an internship at an actual company while getting partial UBC credits. The best part about Co-op is that you’ll be paid, and I’ve heard about students going on Co-op getting hired by their company after they graduate! In the case I heard about, they not only offered her a job after graduation, but they also paid the rest of her tuition fees until she graduated. EDIT: Thanks to Lillienne for correcting me on this! Apparently Co-op does not count towards the 120 credits you need to graduate! See her comment below for more info about Exchange and Co-op.

International Service Learning: Volunteer abroad while gaining partial UBC credits. Places include Africa and Latin America!

Group Study Programs: In this program, you’ll be able to study abroad, but will be able to do so in the comfort of a group. This would be perfect for students who are shy, or if the area/topic you wish to study is not offered through the Exchange Program.

Research Abroad: Again, I’m not too familiar with this area, but it seems pretty self explanatory. This would look great on a resume and would also help you get some hands-on experience.

I hope this post was helpful, but if you’re stuck you can always visit the Go Global offices located in International House at UBC. Drop in services are available from 1-3pm Monday, and 10-12am Tuesday/Wednesday. Be sure to get there early because both times I’ve dropped in it’s been pretty busy.

Katy

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Need a Break from Studying?

November 22nd, 2011 by Katy
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By now, most of you should be finished with midterms (except those of us with papers.) However, everyone needs a break now and again. I’ll admit that I like watching TV, and I have a soft spot for shows with a lot of guts and gore.

Shows I watch (and why you should too):

  1. Parks and  Recreation: It’s like a less awkward version of The Office. Plus, Ron Swanson is a badass.
  2. Criminal Minds: Now that the regular cast has been rehired, the show has really picked up after a lull last season. Criminal Minds is a procedural drama about serial killers – unlike CSI (which I don’t really enjoy) they try to catch the killer before he/she kills another person.
  3. The Walking Dead: A mismatched group of people try to survive the zombie apocalypse. I love this show – there’s blood, guts, and it’s really fun to watch. I’m not even exaggerating when I say that my whole family watches this show – my cousins were the ones who actually told me to start watching it!
  4. Supernatural (Seasons 1-3): I really enjoyed Supernatural up until the 4th Season, but after that the show jumped the shark and turned into some sort of crazy Biblical soap opera. If you like monsters/attractive men I guarantee you will like this show.
Are there any other shows I should be watching? What shows do you guys watch? It’s funny – when you actually list what shows you enjoy it’s pretty revealing about your personality.
Katy
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UBC Commuter Hostel

November 9th, 2011 by Katy
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I hope everyone’s midterm season is going well! They should be winding down around now, but I still have one to go as well as a bunch of papers to write!

That being said, I was wondering if anyone has stayed at the UBC Commuter Hostel. There was a sign up in IKB today about it, and to be honest, it’s the first time I’ve heard of it. Apparently, it’s a place for UBC commuter students to stay if they have an early exam the next day, or if they’re at UBC studying late. This actually sounds like a great service, but I wanted to learn more about it.

I found the UBC page here – and it sounds like a pretty good situation if you really need a place to crash for the night. It’s $30/night, and basic amenities like toiletries and linens are provided.

I’m interested in this, but haven’t really heard anything about it from people who’ve stayed there. If anyone reading this has stayed there let me know how it went!

Katy

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UBC Apple Festival This Weekend!

October 14th, 2011 by Katy
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It’s the Apple Fest this weekend!

Man, it’s kind of embarrassing how excited I get for this festival every year. After all, it’s just apples, right? I’m not sure why I get so excited for this, maybe it’s because I’ve been going every year since I was little. Also, as I mentioned last year, they have the BEST apple pies there.

Since I consider myself kind of a pro at going to the Apple Fest, I’d like to share with you a couple of tips I’ve learned over the years:

  1. If you’re planning on buying lots of apples, I’d recommend bringing a backpack. It’s a little unwieldy carrying several bags of apples and jugs of apple cider back to the car without one.
  2. There’s an area where you can check your bags (backpack) full of apples – use it. That way you don’t have to carry your bag for a long period of time. I can’t remember if it costs money though.
  3. Get there early. This is especially true if you plan on going to the apple tasting, because tickets always sell out super fast. (Unless you don’t mind waiting an hour for the next available tasting.)
  4. Buy an apple pie from the Golden Crust people. Seriously.
  5. If it rains that day, make sure to wear rain boots, because the ground in the gardens gets pretty muddy
Just some background info on the Apple Fest itself:
It’s from 11-4 this Saturday and Sunday.
Entry is $4 (Cash only) – but kids under 12 are free
Apple Tasting is $5
Hope to see you there!
Katy
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Family Business: My Family’s History

September 23rd, 2011 by Katy
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The video below describes my Grandfather’s life as he grew up in Vancouver, and the family’s produce store in Kerrisdale. You can see him as a little boy in his father’s lap around 20 seconds in. The narrator is Girlie Koo, my Great Aunt and my Grandfather’s sister.

I have many memories of the shop described in the video, JB Hoy Produce. When I was young, I remember going there with my parents and “working” the register. They had an old-fashioned brass register that I remember being fascinated by. For my efforts, I was always rewarded with a popsicle from one of the freezers on the lefthand side of the store.

I remember that my Great Uncle Allen was a quiet and kind man, who often worked “behind the scenes” while my Great Aunt interacted with the customers out front. The shop had a great energy and was a large part of the Kerrisdale community.

I wish there were more family run businesses in Vancouver, because every time I enter one I’m reminded of this time in my childhood.

YouTube Preview Image

Katy

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Golden Key Honour Society: Scam?

September 20th, 2011 by Katy
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So, this summer I got a letter in the mail from this Golden Key Honour Society asking me to join. At first it seemed like a pretty legitimate group, but the more I read the more I felt like it was a bit of a scam. There were a couple red flags that made me skeptical of the authenticity of this society.

First of all, they require you to achieve grades that put you in the top 15% of your faculty, but joining once means you are in for life. To my knowledge, there are no yearly fees and no other parameters. Basically, if you do well in your first year of University, you could fail the rest of your courses you would still have membership to this society. Most legitimate academic societies reevaluate your eligibility every year.

Moreover, a quick google search showed me that this group has had money issues in the past. The Wikipedia article has a section entitled “Controversy,” where it describes some shady dealings:

“Concerns were raised over a decade ago about the apparently large gap between the amount of money spent on salaries and the amount spent on giving out scholarships. Articles in theUniversity of British Columbia student newspaper the Ubyssey claimed to have examined the society’s finances and scholarship practices. Although the society claimed to “return 75 per cent of each membership as benefits and services to local chapters and their members [while the] other 25 per cent is used for administrative expenses,” the Ubyssey found that in 1997 salaries, management and general expenses totalled $2,997,827, almost 47 per cent of the $6,430,054 in total expenditures. A second article found that Golden Key spent just $289,461 (US dollars) on scholarships, less than 5 per cent of their total expenditures for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1997. The society now claims to spend approximately $1,000,000 annually on scholarships and awards,[11] though it is unclear whether this allocation has remained proportional since then. ”

However the fact that made me extremely skeptical of this society was the fact that you have to pay $90 to enter. It’s unclear what this money is put toward, except for the vague notion  that “scholarships” are given out by this society. This fee is not mentioned anywhere in the welcome letter, and I was surprised when I saw the amount mentioned.

The Honour Key Society does have a UBC chapter though, so that adds an amount of credibility to it’s name. When I saw their booth at Imagine Day, I wanted to ask some questions about how it would actually add value to my resume, but the girl manning the booth wasn’t even a part of the society! I found that a bit strange, and to be honest I wondered if she was only there to gain acceptance into the society. If that was the case, I could hardly expect any impartial views.

I’m not saying whether you should or should not join this society, however, I’d just tell you to be careful. Make sure you do some research on this group before you decide to join. I wouldn’t want anyone to get scammed out of $90, and I also wouldn’t want people to miss out of valuable experiences because of this!

Katy

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The UBC Bookstore is Giving Me Stress Headaches!!

September 19th, 2011 by Katy
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First of all, let me state that I don’t have unreasonable demands for the bookstore. All I wanted were my books! Seriously, there is a disturbing lack of organization that I’ve noticed over my two years here at UBC. For instance, last year the bookstore ordered the wrong book for my ASTU 100 class, so the professor had to rewrite her entire syllabus to fit the book that the store had ordered instead!  But that’s not what is bothering me right now.

OK, here’s my story:

All I wanted was the course materials for my ARTH 300 class. Since I was on the wait list for the class, I hadn’t bought the course materials ahead of time (in case I wasn’t able to register for the class.) So when I got to register for the class, I went to the bookstore to get the course materials, but of course they were out. (This is understandable because they would have been bought by people already registered in the course.)

On Tuesday I put my name on the course reserve list. Now, if you’re not familiar with a course reserve list, this is where the bookstore orders you a copy of the book, and gives you a call when it arrives. However, they only hold the book for two days. They tell me that the materials should be in on Thursday – Friday at the latest.

Wednesday – Even though they haven’t called me I go to check just in case. Nope.

Thursday – Not in yet.

Friday – Nope.

Saturday – I call to check, and the lady says they’re not in.

Sunday – No call.

Monday (Today) – I still haven’t received a call. I ask the lady at the info desk if my course materials have arrived, and without checking anything, she tells me, “If you haven’t received a call, they’re not in yet.” OK, fair enough. So I walk away to check on the Chem lab coats and find out that they’re not in yet, “but might be upstairs being processed.”

On a whim, I go back and ask the SAME lady to check when I could expect the materials to get in. She rolls her eyes and I say, “humour me.” So she goes onto her computer and then goes to look through the course materials on reserve behind the desk. She then goes back to her computer and tells me, “It looks like the course materials had already arrived, but are sold out now.”

Me: “….What.”

Her: “Yeah, you didn’t get a call?”

Me: “No. No one called me.” By now I want to scratch my eyes out.

Her: “Well do you have voicemail?” She gives me a look like it’s my fault no one called me.

Me: “Yes.”

Her: “It also looks like you’re not on the course reserve list. It seems your name is not on here. You know we only hold the books for two days after we call you, right?”

Me: “I realize that, but no one called me, and every time I came in to ask for the course materials I was told that they weren’t in yet.”

Her: “OK, well I can put you back on course reserve but you’re going to have to wait another couple of days.”

Me: AAAAAHHHHHDHGKSLNFKELNSSSSSSS (in my mind)

So long story short, I have to wait “another couple of days,” for my course materials, and I still don’t have a lab coat.

Katy

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EDIT: When I got home that day, I found a message on my answering machine saying that my course materials had arrived. Since I only had a 1 hour class, that means the package was probably RIGHT BEHIND her when I was speaking to her… When I got there the lab coats were out as well.

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