The Canadian Cancer Society

If you’re interested in joining a team, find out more on their website here. The event is coming up so be sure to register soon!

As the Canadian Cancer Society says, this event is much more than just a simple fundraiser…”it’s an opportunity to celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer, and fight back in the hope of finding a cure”.

When I woke up on the first day of March, the sun was aggravatingly bright and then it hit me: the Olympics were over. I recalled hazily the train wreck of giant beavers and mounties with Avril Lavigne and Simple Plan singing songs I liked when I was an angsty pre-teen and shuddered as I tried to bury that image in the graveyard of forgetfulness. True, the Olympics and the figure skating that I so eagerly awaited was gone, but I could still enjoy my pretty red Vancouver 2010 mittens as I rolled snow into a ball and threw it at my darling friend and fellow blogUT writer, Julia. Speaking of Olympic attire, here are a few fashion highlights and splats of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games.

Mixed Feelings – Team Canada Sweaters

On one hand, these sweaters are rather endearing with its maple leaf and moose but on the other hand, its grey-ish colour scheme and volume makes me feel like someone who will wake up, put on a lumberjack shirt (under this sweater), take out my trusty snowshoes and trek five miles uphill both ways so I could go… I dunno, check my rabbit traps. The rest of the team Canada gear was simple and sporty (I do hate the checked sewing on the black coats though) but this piece, though unique, might be a bit out of place in a world where wearing giant wool sweaters in public is synonymous with crazy cat person.

Thumbs Up – Team Russia Jackets

Platinum medals and quads aside, the Russians sported these really lovely jackets with these wing-like patterns on the shoulders. I prefer the red-on-white version of the jacket than the white-on-red just because it’s more simplistic and I would totally buy one (even if I’m not really cheering for any Russian athlete) – if the thing didn’t cost $1199 and no, that’s not in rubles but Canadian dollars. Still, I’ve got to mention that my favourite piece of Russian wear are these scarves from 2006 Olympics in Torino.

Thumbs Down – Wearing Dark Underwear in a Transparent-ish Suit

Dear Miho Takagi,

We don’t want to see your g-string while you race or practice. It isn’t going to make your time any faster. Or at least it shouldn’t. Not to mention you’re just 15.

Award – Best Figure Skating Costume

This couple won the best dressed award in Ailsa’s article on figure skating outfits and a gold medal and I will give them another award for best dressed again for Tessa’s new dress, which is GORGEOUS. Tessa has gone through at least 3 or 4 dresses for their free dance this season but this one is the best. Simple, elegant and very complimentary to their program. I hope she wears it to the World Championships in 2 weeks in Torino.

Award – Worst Figure Skating Costume

And… it’s a tie! The Worst Figure Skating Costume Award goes to Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin for their culturally insensitive costumes (and program) which stereotype aboriginal people and Tatiana Volosozhar and Stanislav Morozov with these really disturbing blue, shiny, spandex costumes… designed by Olympic pairs bronze medallist Aliona Savchenko. I’m not sure whether I should make an acerbic comment on Aliona’s taste or Volosozhar/Morozov’s decision to even put these monstrosities on. Then again, if you think I complain too much, just wait until the Olympic coverage starts leaking on youtube – David Pelletier would not shut up about the hideousness of those blue… things despite their lovely lifts, and really high twists and throw jumps.

Love – Just Pure Love

I think at the beginning, there was some sort of issue about the Norwegian curling team’s pants but I’ve loved them since the first time I laid eyes on them. Awesome pattern, simple colours and paired with a not so distracting top – I approve. The fact that some of these guys are cute is also a total bonus.

Special Mention – A Crown of Roses

I am rather cross at the moment with Canada’s little figure skating golden boy, Patrick Chan, for calling Johnny Weir out for being improper for wearing a crown of roses from a fan. Chan, you’re just jealous that Johnny can pull the roses off and you can’t. Not to mention he seriously should’ve been ranked higher than you.

To end this article, I will say that rather than taking my fashion policing too seriously, just remember Johnny’s favourite quote: “To thy own self be true.”

Pictures from the Daylife Photo bank, here, here, here, here and here.

1. Opening performance of “Broken Land – A Song for Haiti” by JC and Karim.

I have no idea who these guys are (fellow U of T students, I presume) but what a way to start the conference! A soulful performance with equally riveting lyrics that set the mood for the rest of the evening. Have a listen to the song here…

2. Opening Keynote presented by George Roter

Engineers without Borders Co-founder and Co-CEO George Roter kick started the event by sharing his experiences during his time in various African countries, drawing the link between the rather abstract theme of aid and development to its human connection. After all, as he said, the conference is “about these human beings living in extraordinarily challenging conditions who want to see change for the better”. With a brief history of the development of aid and highlighting specific thought starters, George set the context for the conference reminding the audience that “we need to go beyond the idea of charity and start thinking about [aid] as opportunity, as partnership”.

3. Panelist Andrew Pinto’s take on the question “Is Aid an Equitable & Just Tool for Advancing Health and Human Rights?”

Claiming to be the panel’s least experienced and least  versed speaker on the issue, Andrew Pinto totally underestimated and undersold himself. His skepticism of aid and outright answer of “no” to the question was refreshing to hear after the positive, albeit reluctant, outlooks of the three speakers that preceded him. He spoke eloquently and articulately about the need to trace the roots of aid and inequality in order to fully understand the topic at hand. And though he often spoke of his being a student as a slight against him, it was he, and not the “more experienced” panelists, who was best able to answer most of the questions posed by the attendees.

3. Day 2 Opening Keynote presented by Ben Peterson

Speaking of the importance of the media in advancing human rights awareness, Ben Peterson of jhr (Journalists for Human Rights) started off the very early morning with energy and enthusiasm. Unfortunately, I might be biased in my assessment especially since I work with the man. Nevertheless, Ben covered essential topics that are often overlooked in the discussion of aid and development.

4. NGO Networking Fair

Buzzing with various NGOs like that of TakingITGlobal, Journalists for Human Rights, Partners in Health, Save the Children, Dignitas International, and Doctors without Borders, the NGO Networking Fair gave attendees the opportunity to find out more about the various organizations seeking to make a change and how they can get involved.

5. Panelist Jason Saul on Reinventing Aid and as Workshop Facilitator of Social Entrepreneurship

Quite possibly the best and most engaging speaker of the entire conference, Jason Saul, Founder and CEO of Mission Measurement, addressed the possibility of harnessing the power of the business sector to solve social problems. His talk and his workshop proposed tangible and realistic solutions to the problem that speakers and attendees had been grappling with the whole two days. He discussed the need for non-profits to adapt a business model and the need to develop an efficient metric system that would measure the effectiveness of foreign aid. Saul spoke with a clarity that clearly distinguished the critical difference between doing good and actually solving social problems.

All in all, the HHRights Conference was a tremendous success. To have so many students (a few hundreds by my estimate) attend on a weekend during a time when finals are just about to ruin our lives is truly a feat that the organizers ought to be  proud of. With so many socially conscious, driven, and truly concerned youth, the conference was a hotbed for ideas, conversation, and optimism…

photo from blogTO.com

What can I possibly say that could even remotely capture the feeling that was the 2010 Olympic games? For seventeen days, this entire nation, the entire world, was glued to their TVs reveling in all the competition and the excitement. For seventeen days, Canada demonstrated to the world its incredible hospitality, the amazing talent of its athletes, and the absolute spirit of this great nation. For seventeen days, it was as if all the citizens of Canada were as one. We celebrated together when Bilodeau won that first gold on Canadian soil.  We mourned with Joannie Rochette after hearing about her loss and cheered her on as she courageously took the ice. We drank with Jon Montgomery as he marched the streets of Vancouver. Our hearts went a flutter watching the heavenly Virtue and Moir. We randomly burst into song, belting out our national anthem night after night. We rejoiced and wept together every time our athletes won (or lost). We groaned and moaned collectively when Parise scored that wretched goal in the last few seconds of last night’s game. And of course, we screamed, drank, celebrated and paraded down the streets together when Sid the Kid won us that glorious hockey gold! It has been riveting. Electrifying. Straight-up magical. Never before have I ever felt so proud to be Canadian and I can’t even count the number of times I’ve gotten misty eyed because of all this pride welling up inside of me! With a total of 14 gold medals, not only have our athletes set a personal best for our nation, they’ve set a record that the entire world has yet to beat! It’s been an amazing ride and regardless of whether you were watching the games from Vancouver, the local pub, or just your own living room, the feeling of euphoria has been undeniable and unstoppable.

And so, if I may indulge myself for one last time (everyone shout it with me now)…CA-NA-DA! CA-NA-DA! CA-NA-DA!

photo from blogTO.com

As the co-organizer of #tweet4rights, let me give you the low down on what the whole night was about. The premise behind #tweet4rights was to educate jhr’s online followers, many of whom are avid users of Twitter, Facebook, and blogs, of how they could use social media as a means of sharing and promoting Rights Media – media pieces that create societal dialogue on human rights related issues. The whole idea for the event emerged with the realization that more and more ordinary citizens all around the world are using social media tools to reach out to a global audience to report on and expose the rampant human rights violations that are occurring every day. In the past few months, examples of this have been taking the headlines of major news sources (does Iran or China ring a bell?). The use of social media as a tool to raise and spread human rights awareness is becoming so much more prevalent these days that in 2009, a study by the Committee to Protect Journalists reported that for the first time, more online based reporters were arrested and detained that traditional mainstream journalists.

Thus, sets the background for last night’s #tweet4rights event. Despite weather constraints and an incredibly significant hockey game for our lovely nation, people slowly streamed in to the Cryptic Canvas to learn more about this newly developing concept and how they can make a difference. The evening was started by the Managing Editor of digitaljournal.com and Artistic Director and Founder of Toronto Poetry Slam, David Silverberg, who performed a spoken word piece on the importance of journalism and the media in our society. His performance was then followed by Education Specialist, Carissa Maclennan, who educated attendees of the concept of Rights Media and its place in the social media landscape. Her presentation even asked audience members to develop a 140 character Rights Media piece, which tweeps obviously had fun with!  The rest of the night, attendees had the chance to mix and mingle getting to know fellow catalysts for change.

Being jhr’s first tweet-up, the event was undoubtedly experimental. With such a new and uncertain phenomenon as social media, there is definitely lots of room to improve for the next event but nevertheless, the night can be considered yet another success for jhr (but again, I’m a co-organizer and thus potentially biased!).

If you were unable to attend the event but would like to learn more about Rights Media, you can find more information on jhr’s website here.

About a year and a half ago, I fell completely in love with Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir – a team of Canadian ice dancers. In light of their gold medal victory, I feel completely justified as many of my friends have expressed their awe after watching them. Personally, I also find it hard NOT to love them – I mean, they’ve skated together since they were 7 and 9, it’s obvious that there’s a lot of love and joy in their skating, they’re skilled, beautiful to watch and after meeting them at Skate Canada, I can say that they are wonderfully congenial people. In any case, let’s recap what they did at the Olympics, how they won gold and what their win means in the grander scheme of things.

2-1-1

No, this is not a mathematical formula for anything, 2-1-1 is their ranking for each portion of the competition. Tessa and Scott scored 42.74 in the compulsory dance (CD), the portion of the competition where all skaters skate the same routine on the ice so judges can get an idea of the teams’ skating skills. The compulsory dance at the Olympics was the Tango Romantica – a lyrical tango with intricate steps. As part of their training leading up to the Games, Tessa and Scott (along with their training mates and main rivals Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the U.S.A) trained briefly with Elena Tchaikovskaya, who choreographed the Tango Romantica. Nevertheless, it was the Russian team of Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabalin who won the CD, outscoring Tessa and Scott by 1.02 points. The Russians (as well as the French team, Isabelle Delobel and Olivier Schoenfelder) are known for their good CDs in which speed and power and crucial. Personally, I wasn’t very surprised or worried about the results and their chances at Olympic gold. In a normal competition, this would be a slight lead, although in Olympic competition with inflated scores, this lead was very very minute.

However, I was slightly worried that they would stay in second place after the Original Dance (OD) – the second part of the competition and is sort of the equivalent of the short program in the other disciplines. Each year, the International Skating Union (ISU) sets a theme and a rhythm for the music for the ODs. This year, the theme was a folk dance and Tessa and Scott chose to do a fiery flamenco. Tessa and Scott are sometimes weak in the OD – I was so afraid they’d stumble like they did at Skate Canada -  not to mention that Davis and White have a fabulous Bollywood-inspired program this year. The fear at this point was that the Americans were going to overtake Tessa and Scott for first, while the Russians would rank below the Canadians with their controversial, poorly-received and somewhat offensive Australian Aboriginal dance. Wonderfully enough, Tessa and Scott took the lead in this portion of the competition with a solid performance and the Americans took second place over the Russians.

One interesting fact about Tessa and Scott’s OD was that they were given a stack of about 20 CDs of flamenco music by their choreographer and coach, Marina Zoueva and they decided to skate to Farrucas by Pepe Romero. This was the same music that legendary pairs skaters Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov (who were also choreographed by Zoueva) used in the short program in the 1994 Olympics – they won gold.

The final part of the competition was the free dance (FD) - also Tessa and Scott’s biggest strength. Elegant, beautiful and touching, they delivered a breathtaking performance to Adagietto, the 4th movement to Gustav Mahler’s 5th Symphony. I could go on about their lines and free legs but I think all that needs to be said is that they delivered a golden performance with a program that was pure gold in itself. A few highlights – a lovely dance spin that was simple and uncluttered – a rarity that night, the bit when Tessa does an arabesque while holding onto Scott and of course, the “Goose” lift where she balances on Scott’s thigh and then falls into his arms. I hope they do the original version of that lift in their Gala performance – Tessa actually does a revolution off Scott’s leg to dismount, which is really incredible in light of the fact that she had to have surgery on her shins and go through a painful rehab process last year.

Another fun(ny) fact: Scott decided to prank Tessa after the Russians (the last of the night) skated. Apparently Tessa looks only at the rankings and not the scores, so Scott told her, “So that’s second,” after seeing the Russians’ free dance score. Tessa was graciously accepting the fact that they were going to win silver until Scott interjected, “But we still won.”

A Historic Gold

In winning gold, Tessa and Scott made history. Firstly, they are the youngest team (Tessa is 20 and Scott, 22) to win an Olympic gold medal in ice dance. Secondly, they are the first Canadian ice dance team to win gold as well as the first North American team. On a perhaps smaller note, this gold medal was also one that marked the end of the reign of coach and choreographer Natalia Linichuk whose teams include the Russian bronze medalists and 4th place finishers, Tanith Belbin and Benjamin Agosto. Linichuk had coached a string of world champions and podium finishers in recent years. (In the 2009 World Championships, the gold and silver team were coached and choreographed by Linichuk.) However the top two teams on the Olympic podium are trained and choreographed by Marina Zoueva and Igor Shpilband. Although the win ultimately belonged to Tessa and Scott, let us not forget those who brought them to gold.

One more fun fact – Tessa and Scott are also one of the few pairs that have broken the Russian dominance in the discipline, the others being Marina Anissina and Gwendal Peizerat of France and the legendary Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean – the British dancers who are considered to be the best in ice dance history since they were the only ones  to have ever gotten straight 6.0s (a mark of perfection) under the old 6.0 judging system. Tessa and Scott are now being compared to Torvill and Dean with some claiming that they are even better.

I totally agree. You?

Congratulations on your Olympic victory, Tessa and Scott!

Pictures from the daylife photo bank.

Every year the organization hosts what they like to call the Peace Bowl, a bowling tournament with funds going directly to PxP initiatives. Last year, they raised $10,000 and they’re hoping to up that amount to $12,000 this year on Sunday, February 29th. The students working behind this organization are so committed to their vision and goals, so much so in fact that,  Liisa Hyyrylainen, U of T Chapter President, vows to get a tattoo of their logo, the puzzle piece, if they hit that $12,000 mark (no turning back now, Liisa!). Proceeds from the Peace Bowl will go not just to the schools that cannot afford to fund PxP programs but also to the Peace Festival, a whole day’s worth of fun and games celebrating the culmination of the nearly three month program. Grade 5 students all over the GTA will get together this year on April 6th at Rexall Centre to enjoy a day especially for them, a day meant to commend and reward them for their hard work and effort. But PxP needs your help to ensure that the day goes smoothly so if you would like to volunteer for the event, contact them at pbyptoronto@gmail.com or drop by their office at 21 Sussex Clubhouse, Rm. 531.

Peace by Peace, in its 10th year of operation now, is undoubtedly an organization worthy of praise and encouragement. Run by university students for elementary students, it’s a sign that our generation is headed towards the right direction. Just their name says it all…

Speaker Mark Kuznicki of ChangeCamp. Photo by Andrew Louis/Torontoist

Last Thursday, #voteTOin416 was held at the Annex Live, an event organized by #voteTO, a group of self-proclaimed municipal geeks that came together through Twitter with the shared goal of a better Toronto. Hosted by writer, broadcaster, and organizer, Jane Farrow, and using the upcoming municipal election as a backdrop for discussion, the event showcased fourteen different presentations that captured various solutions for Toronto. And staying true to the Twitter style, each presentation was kept short and sweet…not quite as short as 140 characters but almost. Each speaker had 4 minutes and 16 seconds to share and discuss their vision, some of which included voting reform, the establishment of Toronto as a fair trade city, and the need to solve the city’s bedbug epidemic (yeah, you read correctly).

Packed into the venue like a can of sardines, attendees (a few of which were even mayoral candidates) were hopeful and optimistic. Not everyone may have been supportive of or in agreement with every solution presented but ideas and well-thought out conversations were being generated. And during times like these, that’s always the first step…

Alas, these often maligned and questioned 140 character tweets have served as a launch pad for something so much bigger and it has opened up the societal dialogue that is so essential in a healthy and fully functioning democracy.

So thanks Twitter. And thanks #voteTO.

Taking the plunge into learning a new language can be terrifying, and the experience even more so. You’ve heard all the promos on how many doors it opens, but when you’re wading through yet another translation that just makes absolutely no sense, it can be really tempting to just conclude that languages are just not your thing. Maybe you’re just not cut out for it, right?

Not so! I’m on my third non-native language right now, and believe me, I’ve been through all of the painful “bloody hell how does anyone remember this” moments, the “why the f*** do you need subjunctive” moments, the “why does every *&$^% word start with q” moments, and everything in between. The thing is, it really does get better. I promise. If you’re brave enough to keep going with languages, or not sure if you are, here are some tips to help you on your way:

Yes, it does get better.

There really, really, really is a learning curve. Here’s how it goes (at least for me. Have a different one? Leave a comment!):

a)    The Noob Stage. You’re totally new to the language, and it’s pure, painful memorization. You’re amazingly proud when you’re able to read that one sentence that the textbook constructed especially for you. On the other hand, quizzes are pretty easy: it’s just regurgitating what you’ve memorized, or translating things you’ve already seen with massive amounts of vocabulary and grammar help.
b)    The grammar stage. This is when you’ve finally memorized all of the grammar. You’re way more confused about the language than you’ve ever been before, but things are looking up. I mean, you’ve memorized all of the grammar, that means you technically know the language, right?
c)    The shoot me stage. This is when you realize that the language has a seemingly infinite amount of rules and details that Wheelock (or whatever your introductory textbook was) didn’t happen to think were important. Oh and it has way more vocabulary than could possibly be necessary (who needs 20 words for “kill”?). And those subjunctives, and those horrible “q” words? Well, apparently authors really love using them. Just to torment you.
d)    The epiphany stage. Suddenly, things start falling into place. Vocab’s still a bitch, and grammar is just starting to settle in, but all of a sudden you can see the writing through the words (or start to string something coherent together, if you’re learning a modern language). All of a sudden you’re reading (or speaking), not just translating.
e)    The cruising stage. Grammar really settles in. You’re still looking up massive amounts of vocabulary, but at least it’s not every word. If you concentrate, take a deep breath, you can actually read, left to right (or right to left, depending on the language), like you would in English. Conversation is starting to come more freely, although it still sounds oddly like English with an accent.
f)    The Comfy stage. You’re not fluent yet, but you know enough to suit your purposes. From here on in, its just practice, practice, practice. …and lots of it. This is the easiest rut to get stuck in, unfortunately.

The point is, painful as it is, there really is a light at the end of the tunnel. You just have to keep that in mind, and force yourself through the painful bits. It really does get easier.

I meant the bit about practice.

Some people try to read through the whole grammar book, memorize it, and hope that will teach them the language. It doesn’t. Believe me, I’ve tried (well not the whole book. I think I gave up somewhere around strong verbs). The only way to learn a language is to keep practicing. Thankfully, same thing goes for vocab. For those of us who don’t have the best memory for vocab, practice works really well.
If you’re studying modern languages, practicing is a lot easier; just turn on the TV! And yes, I know, you’ve heard that millions of times from your profs, but just never feel like it. Try watching those classic movies you’ve always heard of. That way, it’ll feel like you’re catching up on classics, rather than doing homework.

Know thyself.

Start by figuring out what kind of learner you are. Visual, mechanical, or auditory? This may sound cliché, but it really helps you learn faster. Also, figure out if you’re a logical or intuitive thinker. If you’re more logical, grammar is your friend. If you’re intuitive, try to just go with your gut, and work out the grammar afterwards.

Set goals, and don’t sweat the small stuff.

Yes, languages can be overwhelming. Know how much new information you can process at a time, and don’t try to understand everything at once. If you’re patient, things do eventually fall into place. Knowing your goals can help you prioritize: if you’re learning just to be able to converse, focus on vocabulary, and watch lots of TV! If you want to read in the language, focus on vocabulary and try to get a feel for style and idiom – these will let you at least understand the gist of what you’re reading, and give you an intuitive grasp of non-standard usage. If you’re studying language for the sake of the grammar, you probably don’t need to be reading this blog.

Cue Cards Are Your Friend.

I’m not kidding. My entire windowsill is covered in boxes filled with cue cards, and my purse rains little white slips of paper with bizarre words written on them.
Also, try using these to memorise grammar, as well as vocab. I had a lot of trouble memorizing Old English declensions, until I put them on cue cards: 15 minutes of shuffling, and I (mostly) haven’t had trouble since.

Take a step back.

Language classes are designed to constantly challenge you – which can make you feel like you’re going nowhere. Take a step back, and look at how much you’ve progressed. Try going back to things you read a year ago, and see how much easier they are. Even better, try picking up a book in the language, and just reading it. Forget about the perfect translations you need to make for class, forget about the vocab you don’t know, forget about the fine points of grammar. If you just read and try to get the sense of it, you’ll be surprised at how much you can actually understand.

Photo from here.

Cakewrecks

I have spent so much time either ogling at the lovely cakes they post on Sundays and laughing hysterically at the mess ups they post everyday. Witty comments, funny cakes, what more can you ask for? (P.S. If you need an instant laugh, the turkey cakes section will do the trick!)

Passive Aggressive Notes

Angry at someone? Write a note to vent your feelings! Are you a recipient of an angry note? Post it on this site! I have to say, the best notes are usually from cranky office workers. Oh, the drama.

Lamebook

I’m sure there are several of these on the internet, but Lamebook is a compendium of all the stupid, TMI or strange things people post on facebook. You’d think that people would have more common sense on what they post on the internet, especially since they’re not so anonymous anymore…

Texts From Last Night

Mostly a collection of texts people send to each other when they’re drunk.

Neopets

Because we need to embrace that inner child from time to time.

Enjoy!